


The Private Eye and the Princess

by KristannaFever



Category: Frozen (Disney Movies)
Genre: F/M, Kristanna, Modern AU, Murder, Smut, Suicide, Violent Crime, and it's pretty dark, content warning for, domestic abuse, lots of crime and swearing, old school crime type of thing, set in a time before cell phones computers and the internet were mainstream, set in the late eighties, so beware I guess, this is a bit of a darker story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-22
Updated: 2020-06-23
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:14:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 77,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22377772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KristannaFever/pseuds/KristannaFever
Summary: Set in Manhattan in 1989, Kristoff is a Private Eye and Anna is Royalty who has come to solicit his discreet services to find out if her fiance is cheating on her before the fast approaching wedding.
Relationships: Anna & Kristoff (Disney), Anna/Kristoff (Disney)
Comments: 66
Kudos: 128





	1. Chapter 1

**_New York City, 1989_ **

“Excuse me? Are you Mr. Bjorgman, the Private Investigator?”

Kristoff raised his eyes at the quiet, feminine voice. A petite woman, under the disguise of a floppy hat and large sunglasses, stood at his open doorway. She appeared nervous as she fiddled with the strap of her purse with tiny, white gloved hands.

In his neighborhood, and more particularly in his dingy office, she looked painfully out of place.

“Yes, I am,” he answered, trying to keep the annoyance from his voice, wondering where in the hell his secretary was off to for this woman to be able to walk right into his office.

“Are you, um, available, for uh… a job?” she asked, taking a small step into the room.

Kristoff snuffed his half-smoked cigarette then leaned back in his chair, pulling in a deep breath. He didn’t know why, but she had trouble written all over her. In every sense of the word. He knew right away that she was in trouble, just as he knew she would _be_ trouble, but it was much too early to tell just what kind.

“I am,” he said, gesturing with one hand for her to take a seat across his desk. “What kind of services are you looking for?”

She hesitated for a second before walking slowly forward on stiletto heels and sitting herself delicately in one of the two seats that sat across his desk. She placed her designer purse on her lap and folded her hands overtop of it. Kristoff caught a whiff of her perfume with her movement, recognizing the delicate fragrance as a very expensive brand.

“I need, well rather, I _have_ to find out, if, my, how shall I put this…”

“Husband or Fiancé?”

Kristoff didn’t need to see her eyes to know they had widened in surprise. She was a classic case. He’d seen many like her come into his office over the years, scared of hiring someone to do what he did. He’d been through this scenario more times than he could remember.

“Fiancé,” she said slowly. “I need to know before we are wed, if he is cheating on me. It could be… very bad for me and many others if I am not marrying the man he appears to be.”

Kristoff knew there was money involved. From the look of her, there was a lot of it. 

There was something off about her though. A secret she seemed to believe had everyone fooled. Not Kristoff however, he could see it almost as plain as day. 

Her lips were painted a deep scarlet, her face was caked with so much makeup that she appeared to have flawless porcelain skin. Even the skin of her neck, hidden mostly by a large but delicate scarf, was hidden below the heavy foundation. Kristoff knew however, the smatter of freckles that he would see if her face was bare. The skin on her delicate wrists, and the tiniest sliver showing between her scarf and her blouse at her shoulder gave her away. That was how he knew she was probably not a true blond, as her hair color suggested. His gut instinct that told him right away that it was not her decision to change it, or paint her face so much for that matter. He had to wonder, no he was sure, that it was her fiancé’s insistence that she pretend to be a flawless blonde.

“What are the politics involved?” he asked.

“I beg your pardon?”

“Are we talking about a public figure here? Head of state? Diplomat? Royal, perhaps?”

She pulled in a sharp breath. It told him all he needed to know. He was fishing to get the truth for the simple reason he had to know exactly what he was getting himself into before helping this woman. Her accent was so slight that he almost missed it, but it was still there. There would be no other reason for someone like her to be in his office unless she wanted his services to be discreet as possible. That, and the way she spoke, moved, held herself, dressed, did not fidget in the slightest despite clearly wanting to, screamed someone with a crown and a title. Someone groomed to represent their country properly. 

“There is Royalty involved, yes,” she said slowly, reaching up and sliding her dark glasses from her face.

Kristoff blinked, fighting to keep his body language in check at the jolt he felt to look into her eyes. They were beautiful and deeply pained. It wasn’t until then that Kristoff understood exactly what kind of trouble she was going to be, and it was the _worst kind._

“What about him?” he asked, maintaining a neutral voice even though he was transfixed by everything she held in her eyes. “Is your fiancé royal as well?”

Her gaze remained steadfast, like she was finally understanding exactly what Kristoff did for a living. Clearly, she thought that she had him pegged, that he would be unable to surprise her further.

She did not know how wrong she was.

“He is thirteenth in line for his own throne. I would say the only way he will ever be in a position to be as royal as he desires, is by marrying me.”

“Can I ask, if you are engaged to this man and here to hire me to find out if he is cheating on you, why you are even holding onto your ring in the first place?”

“You think I should just give it back to him and call it off? Just walk away because he _might_ be acting unfaithful to me? You think it’s as clear-cut as that?”

“I don’t think you truly love him.”

Her mouth fell slack. Kristoff waited as she reined herself in and clenched her jaw with resignation.

“I do love him, but that has nothing to do with this.”

“Then fill me in,” Kristoff said.

“It’s complicated.”

“I think I can manage.”

She set her mouth into a firm line, anger flashing across her features. “I am not here for myself. I am here on behalf of my Queen.”

“Mother or sister?”

“Sister,” she said with a touch of distain. “She believes that my fiancé is unfaithful. She is the one who is demanding I make sure that he is honorable before I marry him. She is the one who made me come down here, to this,” her eyes flicked around the room, “this _filthy_ neighborhood, to find someone to look into this. _Discreetly.”_

She bared her teeth with frustration as she prepared to keep explaining. Kristoff put up a hand to stay her mouth.

“I will take the job, but it ain’t going to be cheap.”

She laughed, surprising him a little, although he did not let it show.

“Money,” she said, sliding her glasses back on her face, “is not an issue.”

*****

The worst part of the job was waiting. It just so happened, that waiting was most of the job.

The Princess had given him all the details that he had asked for, hand written in a delicate cursive on pink stationary. She had gotten back to him quickly, which was usually the case with sensitive matters like the one the she found herself in. 

Kristoff looked over the paper and noted that Hans Westergaard had a very busy yet easy to track schedule. Kristoff chose his last stop of the day as the most logical place to start. A meeting at the Four Seasons.

Kristoff watched Hans arrive with his five-man security detail, snapping pictures on his camera with his zoom lens as he sat in his car parked on the other side of the street a half a block down. As soon as Hans disappeared into the lobby, Kristoff took pictures of any woman who walked into the hotel alone.

After an hour, making note of the dozen or so women, Kristoff finally put the camera down and settled himself, leaning back in his seat, ready to do some more waiting. He sighed, watching vigilantly and letting his mind wander a little. He thought first of the Princess and the details surrounding their second meeting.

She appeared much the same as the first time she entered his office, except this time her fake blonde hair was mostly hidden by the scarf wrapped around her head. She took off her big glasses as soon as she sat down, her now familiar perfume grazing his nostrils. The scent was gone as quick as it reached him, teasing his senses. He admired any woman who understood the subtle art of applying perfume. Too many times he’d been assaulted with fragrance when in the company of the fairer sex. It took a special touch to understand that even if you can’t smell it on yourself, others can. 

The same could be said about men and cologne. If Kristoff bothered to wear any, he would at least know how to apply it properly.

The Princess dispensed with any formalities and handed him the paper without a greeting, only wanting to know how long it was going to take to find out the truth. She was in shock when he told her it could take weeks, if not months to gather proper evidence. The wedding, she explained in exasperation, was thirty-four days away and she needed to know as quickly as possible.

Kristoff had wanted to laugh and tell her that she better think of an excuse to postpone the wedding. It was the things he saw in her eyes that held his tongue. Before he knew what was happening, he suddenly found himself doing something he had never done before. He had made her a promise that he wasn’t sure he’d be able to keep.

Princess Anna was definitely the worst kind of trouble.

The image of her in his mind disappeared when two men from Hans’s security detail stepped out from the lobby onto the sidewalk. Kristoff reached over and grabbed his camera. He adjusted the lens and waited until the target himself came into view. The man looked pleased with himself. Smug. Guilty.

_Slimeball,_ Kristoff thought. The pointy-nosed, auburn-haired man looked very bit the part of a cheating asshole.

He waited to see if any woman would join him. None did. Hans got into a limo and pulled away, leaving Kristoff to wait for an hour, then two, trying to pinpoint any woman who came out alone after him. He paid very close attention to try and recognize if any of them were the same as the ones who followed Hans into the hotel earlier. It was late, however, and the street was quiet. Not a single woman emerged after Hans.

Kristoff felt unease roll through his stomach. The man looked exactly like someone who was stepping out on his woman, yet based on this first surveillance, it was a possibility that he really was there for a business meeting as his schedule suggested.

Kristoff stayed another hour to be sure, coming up empty as the clock rolled past one in the morning. He grumbled to himself all the way home, fearing exactly what kind of challenge he was about to face.

*****

“It’s been a week and you have nothing? _Nothing?”_

“Afraid not Princess,” Kristoff said, leaning back in his chair and lighting a cigarette. 

“Stop calling me that!” she said, exasperated. “My name is Miss Arendelle and I’ll ask you, _again_ , that you address me as such.”

Kristoff waived a hand at her, “Yeah, whatever. Look, I am going to need to know more about his business if I am going to get anywhere with this.”

She paused. “Like what?” she asked quietly.

Kristoff could tell right away from the look in her eyes that she had no idea what her fiancé’s business truly was. 

“What, can I ask, is he doing here for business anyway? Surely, he has his own back in his country. Or yours, for that matter.”

She shifted uncomfortable in the chair, dainty, gloved hands coming down to fiddle with the edge of her pastel cardigan. “His family is trying to broaden their horizons. They want to set up a satellite office here in New York.”

“And what exactly are these horizons?”

Her lips twitched ever so slightly. Kristoff knew she probably wasn’t even aware that it was a nervous tick of hers. “I’ll admit, that I don’t quite know,” she said slowly.

“Is that because you’ve never asked, or because he’s never answered when you do?”

Her eyes darkened. She opened her mouth but no words came out. Instead she pulled her lips back together and shook her head, turning her gaze to the ceiling.

His heart went out to her, and not for the first time. He wondered just how much prettier her eyes would be if she was bare faced and sporting her real hair color. Again, not a first time thought. 

Kristoff knew he had to distance himself from his feelings. If he was to play in this dangerous game, not just leave his emotions on the sidelines as he had so far managed, he would probably lose everything. Hell, he _knew_ he’d lose everything.

“So, you _have_ asked. I’ll bet he has managed to give you vague answers or change the subject.”

Her eyes slowly came down and met his and after a still moment, she nodded slightly. “I didn’t even realize he was doing it until my sister asked him his business once. He did the same to her. That’s when her mistrust started, I suppose.”

“What is it that he has blinded you with, that your sister was able to see?”

Her eyes narrowed. “You talk about him like he’s guilty, just like my sister. Yet after a week you still have no evidence that he is unfaithful.”

“Cheaters cover their tracks, doll. Especially smart, rich ones. It’s not easy to catch them with their pants down.”

Her brows came together in anger. “You will never address me as _doll_ again,” she leaned her body forward. “And if you can’t get me an answer by the end of the week, I am taking my business elsewhere.”

Kristoff remained stoic, studying the rage on her face. She was a passionate one, there was no doubt about that.

Her eyes darted back and forth between his while she pretended to simply wait for his response. Kristoff had to wonder what she was looking for. It wasn’t just his rudeness that was bothering her, it was something else, but he had no idea what. There was nothing to him except for the work he did and the solitary life he lead. There never would be anything else. If she was trying to see something in him besides what appeared on the surface, she was barking up the wrong tree.

“Well?” she threw her shoulders up. “Should I just walk out the door now then, save us both a lot of effort and time?”

“I promised you I would discover the truth before your wedding date, didn’t I?”

She scoffed at him as she leaned back in the chair. “Yes, and I’m sure you will be the one interrupting the part where there’s any objections for us to be wed.” She shook her head. “I am sorry, I simply cannot leave it that long. I need to know as quickly as possible.”

“I told you, cheaters like your fiancé are hard to catch.”

“Maybe he’s not cheating! Why has that never occurred to you?”

Under all that makeup he knew the Princess’s cheeks were hot with anger. He felt the flush of heat take to his own face thinking about what kind of monster would make her cover up her natural beauty. He didn’t need to prove to himself her fiancé was cheating. He felt it deep down in his gut just looking at the weasel. “If you think he’s so innocent, you wouldn’t be here,” Kristoff said, keeping his anger off his voice. “Maybe that’s what has never occurred to you.”

Her gaze fell to the desk and Kristoff could tell she was trying very hard to prevent her shoulders from slumping. He had to wonder what this Hans had done to her to have her blind trust. It wasn’t just the Queen who needed to know the truth. The Princess did too, if not more. She was simply unable to admit it to herself.

“Miss Arendelle,” Her eyes came back up at the way he addressed her. “I will find out. I will get you the answer you need, just give me two weeks.”

“That’s so close to the wedding,” she said quietly, looking away as her eyes started to shimmer.

Kristoff understood how hard this must be for her. He had no idea what it would be like to be bound by a royal bloodline. All he knew was that he would never be able to handle it with even the tiniest fraction of the grace that she seemed to.

“I will discover the truth,” he said softly, “one way or another.”

“What does that mean?” she asked, eyes meeting his again. 

Her gaze still jolted him. He thought he would be used to it by now. Strange that he wasn’t. She wasn’t like the other women who had wandered into his office. She would never ‘ _thank_ ‘ him for uncovering a cheating partner with a blowjob or some rough and wild sex. No, she was so much more than that. She was special. Beneath her ‘pretty’ shell, she was a gorgeous and real woman, he had no doubt about that. He suddenly longed to look at her bare flesh, no makeup, no clothing… nothing to hinder her natural beauty. Just her, the way she was made, real and soft and warm under his hands, head tilted back as his name fell breathlessly from her lips when he brought her to-

“Mr. Bjorgman?”

Kristoff pulled himself back, reluctantly squashing the sensuous image of her in his mind like the cigarette he was smoking in his ashtray. He was letting himself get way too close to the edge of disaster. 

“It means,” he cleared his throat, “that I’m staking out his meetings tonight and if they don’t give me what I am looking for, I start to take drastic measures.”

“Such as?”

“Not important,” he said waving his hand. “I am just banking on seeing a familiar face. That would certainly give me the break I am looking for.”

“Familiar face how?” she asked, leaning forward with curiosity.

“Any of the women I’ve seen in his vicinity before. There seems a suspicious number of lone women entering places after him. I just need one repeat face to find someone to lean on.”

“Lean on? You mean threaten?”

Kristoff pulled in a slow breath. “Never with violence,” he said quietly.

She looked disgusted all over again to be associating with him. Of all the times he’d been given that look over the years, this was the first time it bothered him. It felt like a blow to the gut coming from those beautiful eyes of hers - eyes that seemed to reach into the very heart of his soul and send uneasy shivers down his spine. 

Worst kind of trouble indeed. 

“It’s the nature of the business, sweetheart,” he said, showing her no emotion as he reached for his pack of smokes.

She scowled at how he addressed her but didn’t say anything. He could tell she was suddenly thinking about her situation for the first time. Perhaps she realized just how real this all was. She had come in to prove her sister wrong. Now she looked like she was finally realizing she needed to prove herself wrong.

“What if I recognized someone? Would that help?”

Kristoff shrugged. “It wouldn’t hurt. I can show you all the pictures I’ve taken so far.”

“Yes,” she said, her eyes wide and resolute. “Show me.”


	2. Chapter 2

Kristoff didn’t want her to be discouraged. He probably should have mentioned ahead of time that there would likely be no one she would recognize. In almost every case he ever worked, a married woman could pass her husbands mistress on the street and neither would recognize each other.

“You look disappointed, Princess,” he said, not meaning to be flippant but unable to help himself. The sooner she realized the truth, the better.

She looked up from the photos and scowled at him before she flipped back to the beginning to look again. He realized that he had gotten into her head much like the way that she had gotten into his. She however, was unaware of either. _Blissfully_ unaware, in Kristoff’s opinion. 

“Look, come in first thing tomorrow and we can go over the pictures I take this evening. If we don’t get anywhere with it, I will take my investigation where I can find out the truth.”

“At what cost to you?”

No one had ever asked him that before. He didn’t think anyone would actually care. “It doesn’t matter, Anna,” Her eyes widened and he corrected himself, “Miss Arendelle. I’ve never gotten myself into anything I couldn’t handle.”

Her eyes studied his for a moment before she nodded slowly. “Well, I would like to speed this process up if we could. I will go with you on your stake out tonight and see if I can recognize anyone.”

Kristoff nearly choked on his surprise. “Absolutely not,” he coughed.

“Why not? Then you don’t have to bother developing photos for me to look at in the morning. I want to help in any way I can.”

“Sitting in a parked car on dangerous streets all night is no place for a Princess.”

Anna rolled her eyes. “You think I’m just a fragile little doll. I will have you know that I am much more than that. I can handle myself better than you think, Mr. Bjorgman.”

“Oh, I am sure you have been trained in all sorts of things. Let me guess, five languages?”

“Six, actually.”

“Ballet?”

Anna nodded.

“Fencing or Archery?”

“Fencing.”

“Meditation and Tai Chi.”

“Yes…”

“And self defence tactics with full training in… let’s see, based on your petite frame, I would be willing to put money on jiu-jitsu.”

Her exasperated sigh to him he hit the nail on the head. 

“Well there you go,” she said. “I can handle myself. Even against someone as big as you.”

“Some other guys maybe, but not me.”

“You have training as well then?” 

Kristoff nodded. “A lot more than you. As much as you like to think you could take me out, even though I can guarantee you wouldn’t make it easy for me, there is no way you could.”

Her eyes narrowed like she wanted to challenge him, but there was no way in hell he was ever going to let that happen.

“Regardless, I am going with you tonight.”

Kristoff contemplated fighting her on it but deep down inside he wanted to spend more time with her. He would love nothing more than to simply talk to her and try to discover the truth about why she was letting this Hans guy change her so much. It was not in his nature to care but there was just something about her. He simply had to know.

He nodded, reluctantly. “Alright, but you need to assure me that your being absent in the evening will not cause your fiancé alarm.”

Anna shook her head. “It won’t. I told him I was going home for a week to visit my sister. I even let him drive me to the airport this morning.”

Despite thinking he had figured out the Princess, Anna was proving to be extremely deceptive. He knew she was intelligent. He just hadn’t realized until that moment, how intelligent. 

And how reckless.

“You were hoping that he might relax a little and slip up somewhere without you in town.” It wasn’t a question.

Anna nodded.

“Anna,” he started, not caring in the slightest the informal way he was addressing her. “What were you going to do, can I ask?”

Her brow furrowed and her eyes shifted quickly to the left. Kristoff knew she was about to lie. 

“I don’t know what you mean,” she started.

“Forget it,” he said, holding up his hand and shaking his head. “I don’t want to know.”

Truly, he didn’t. The thought of her trying to surprise him in their penthouse at night sent shivers down his spine. Rich and powerful men like Hans, cheating on their rich and powerful fiancés, were the most dangerous types of men.

“I wasn’t going to do anything stupid. I just thought-”

“Anna, listen to me. Don’t take this lightly. I know you still think he is innocent but I can also see that you are starting to think about all the little things that you’ve been ignoring so far. Maybe it was a certain smell on his clothes one time, or a faint discolored patch on his neck that looked a lot like a hickie, I don’t know. That’s good for you to be thinking about those details, but Anna, you should not ever confront him on your own. Do you understand me?”

“He would never hurt me but I appreciate your concern.”

Defiant. Dammit, she still didn’t trust him. He was going to have to work hard and fast to prove that Hans was not the faithful man she thought him to be.

“Well, what time will we be heading out tonight then?” she asked, eyes seeming to dare him to try and argue with him further.

“Eight,” he said, surprised by the defeat in heard in his own voice.

“Alright,” she stood gracefully to her feet. “I will see you then.”

“Don’t go anywhere near his vicinity, Anna,” Kristoff warned. “The last thing we need is for you to be caught in a lie. If he knows he’s being watched, he is going to cover all his tracks and you will _never_ be able to prove that he is cheating.”

“ _If_ he is cheating.”

“I mean it, Anna. Dead serious.”

She blinked at him and her lips twitched. He caught her. She was going to try and staking him out on her own in the meantime. Foolish woman. Intelligent, brave, and foolish.

Kristoff took to his feet. Her eyes followed his as he walked around the desk and towered over her. “This is very serious. If he had any idea that you’re trying to spy on him, or that you’ve hired me, it will be very bad for _everyone_ involved.”

“I wasn’t going to do anything,” she said, gaze unflinching from his.

He didn’t like it when she lied to him. Kristoff pushed his face towards hers until their noses were only a few inches apart before she finally pulled back a little. 

“Don’t lie to me again, Princess,” he warned. “I’ve been at this a long time. I know what I’m doing and I know what kind of situation you are in. It can be _dangerous_.”

She swallowed loudly and nodded, pulling the composure back on her face. “Eight then?”

Kristoff nodded.

She turned without another word or glance, opened the door and walked out of his office.

Kristoff watched her, letting out a frustrated sigh. As much as he didn’t want to think about her backside as she walked away, that it exactly what he was doing. She had been in his office every day for the entire week inquiring if he had made any progress, not realizing how much her being there was actually hindering it. The thing was that he absolutely could not afford to let himself be distracted this way. He was deeply attracted to her but it was more than something purely physical, which was new to him. Despite thinking he had his emotions about her sorted out, she was constantly presenting him with different ways to feel about her.

It took him a solid minute for his mind to untangle from all the details of their most recent exchange. That was when he finally noticed a man sitting in one of the three chairs in the tiny outer waiting area, staring curiously into his office at him.

Kristoff went to his open door, unsurprised to find the chair of his receptionist’s desk empty. When was the last time she had been in, anyway?

“Are you the Private Investigator?” The man asked as he stood and approached him.

“Uh, yes,” Kristoff answered, trying to shake the lingering smell of Anna’s perfume from his nostrils so he could focus.

“I am in need of someone to help me find out if my business partner is embezzling money from our company. For a while now he’s been-”

“I’m not taking any new cases right now.”

The man recoiled slightly at the harshness of Kristoff’s tone. He was letting Princess Anna get to him and he needed to stop this madness before it ruined him. 

“I apologize,” Kristoff shook his head, trying to clear his troubled mind. “It has been a rough couple of weeks. I am just too busy to take on any new cases right now. I can take your name and number and call you when I am able, but honestly, I have no idea when that might be.”

The man looked disappointed. “Okay, I understand. I need to sort this out right away though. I think I will take my business elsewhere.”

“Good luck then,” Kristoff sighed. Truth was that he needed to take that man’s case. His bank account had been dwindling with the recent lack of business he’d been having and the fact that the rent for his office and his apartment was raised _again_. He needed everything he could get, despite what the Princess had promised to pay him.

Anna, however, was his priority. He was going to do everything in his power to discover the truth, including taking a business hit to focus on her case.

Worst kind of trouble and then some.

*****

“Can you not smoke, please? I can’t breathe.”

“Listen, you were the one who demanded to sit here with me. You can just put up with it or go home.”

She sneered her nose at him as she crossed her arms and pressed herself more firmly into the seat of the car. She wasn’t going anywhere.

Kristoff took another drag of the smoke then crushed it, half-finished, into the ashtray. 

They sat in silence for a long time. Kristoff welcomed it. It was easier to think and concentrate when she wasn’t opening that pretty mouth of hers. As much as he had initially wanted to find out more about her, he finally realized how dangerous that would actually be given his deep attraction to her. He couldn’t let himself down that path ever again.

Hans had walked into the lavish hotel an hour earlier. Even with his eye behind the lens of the camera snapping pictures, Kristoff noticed Anna’s body stiffen at the sight of him. Much like the way it did every time a lone woman would walk down the street and in after him. After taking pictures, Kristoff would look over at her and she should shake her head that no, she did not recognize any of them.

“How long do you usually wait?” Anna asked. 

“Until he comes back out, then a couple hours afterwards.”

“Must be boring.”

Kristoff shrugged. “It let’s me get a lot of thinking done.”

She nodded, pretending to politely understand when he knew damn well she thought it was ridiculous. When she turned her gaze out the side window, he took the time to pass his eyes quickly over her body again. She was not wearing a scarf this time, but a navy turtleneck instead. Paired with coral chiffon pants she would look stunning were it not for her fake blonde hair and mask of makeup.

The vision of her natural naked body swam into his mind again. He pushed it away immediately and chided himself for the hundredth time.

She was quiet for another moment before she spoke softly. “So, do you have any family?”

Kristoff repressed his sigh. “No.”

Anna pursed her lips at his terse response. “No family at all?”

“Nope,” Kristoff answered. He knew what she wanted to know but he didn’t want to give her the truth. He couldn’t. He would never put his adoptive family in danger. Better her and everyone else to think he was a complete loner.

“Must be lonely,” she fished.

Kristoff kept the smile off his lips. He could give her a little information, couldn’t he? There was no harm in telling her _one_ tiny insignificant detail of his life, was there? 

“Well, I do have a cat,” Kristoff replied after a moment.

“A cat? Really?” Her eyes lit up. “I wouldn’t figure you for a cat person.”

“I’m not,” Kristoff admitted. “The scrawny thing was headed to be euthanized after a domestic violence incident in a case I was working. I guess I took pity on the stupid animal.”

“That’s sweet,” Anna smiled.

“That cat scratched and bit me for a thank you when I tried to carry him from my car to my apartment. I almost just let him go right then and there, let him fend for himself on the mean streets of New York.”

“But you didn’t?”

“No,” Kristoff sighed, finally letting himself show her a little smile. “It took him a solid month before he came out from under the couch when I was home. After that, he started to trust me a little. Now he let’s me pet him. Only if he’s in the mood of course.”

Anna giggled. “Typical cat. What’s his name?”

Kristoff shrugged. “I had no idea what name they gave him was, so I call him Sven.”

“That’s a cute name.”

Kristoff spotted another woman and grabbed his camera to snap some pictures then looked to Anna. She shook her head.

They fell quiet again. Kristoff thought better than to ask her about her life, despite wanting to. The less he knew about her the easier it would be when this was all over.

Another hour passed with no signs of anything worth note. Anna had been shifting in her seat for a while. As she grew more restless, Kristoff knew exactly what was going to come out of her mouth before she said it.

“So, what do you do when you have to… um… pee?”

He laughed at the quiet and undignified way the words had come out of her mouth. “You don’t want to know.”

“I’ll bet it has something to do with those empty bottles in the back seat,” she looked over at him with disgust.

Kristoff tapped his nose twice, grinning at her.

“Well, I am not peeing in a bottle. What do I do?”

“My suggestion is to hold it.”

“I… I can’t.”

Her thighs clenched together, slender muscles pushing against the delicate fabric of her pants. Kristoff’s cock twitched with want. God, did he ever want her. He wanted to have her as much as he wanted her to know what it was like to be loved by a real man. A man who would treat her like a Goddess. A man who would worship the way she was made.

“Well?” she whined, twisting in her seat again.

All the shops along the street were closed and there was no way they could go into the hotel. There only seemed to be one option. 

“Go into the alley and pee behind that dumpster,” Kristoff gestured behind her with his hand. 

She looked out her window and then back at him. Her face looked like she was going to protest, until she seemed to understand it was the only place. She nodded once and slipped from the car as quietly as she could.

Kristoff was torn between watching to make sure she was okay while she was hidden behind the dumpster and keeping his focus on the hotel doors. He did both, quickly looking from one direction to another to make sure nothing was lurking in the alley to cause Anna any harm, until he spotted Hans coming out of the hotel.

He grabbed his camera and took pictures, hating the man all over again. Hans quickly disappeared into his limo, followed by his five big body-guards, then drove out of sight.

Anna slipped quietly back into the car a second later.

“You just missed-”

“I know,” she answered quietly, like she was afraid that he might somehow overhear. “I saw him just as I was coming out of the alley. I almost had a heart attack that he would spot me. Thank God he never even glanced this way.”

“Indeed,” Kristoff murmured. He did not like the thought of how close of a call that was. It was stupid to take her with him. He knew better. _He fucking knew better!_ Thinking with his dick instead of his head. The last time he had done that, it had been disastrous. Why was he allowing himself to do it again? He promised himself he never would, and honestly, he didn’t think he would even be able to. Yet here he was, almost constantly distracted by the thought of making love to her.

“Listen Anna, I think that from now on-”

“There!” Anna straightened up in her seat and pointed out the windshield. “There’s a woman coming out.”

Kristoff grabbed his camera and started snapping photos when a man came out behind her only a few seconds later. They linked arms and walked off into the night.

Anna slumped back in her seat. “Never mind,” she whispered.

Kristoff opened his mouth again to tell her that she couldn’t join him on his stakeouts anymore, but no words came out. 

_Fuck!_

He couldn’t do this. Not to her. Not after what happened the last time.

Still, he couldn’t just leave her alone every night to worry and wonder and pace the floor of… of…

“Anna, where are you staying while Hans thinks you’re away?”

_Jesus Christ, you’re going to get her killed too, Bjorgman. You should have thought about that VERY important detail LONG before now. Stop letting your dick do all the thinking, you stupid goddamn asshole._

“In the Gramercy Park Hotel. Don’t worry, I used a fake name to-”

“Too high profile.” His heart began to thump heavily in his chest at his own asininity.

“It’s a long way from our penthouse near-”

“Not far enough. That place is too high-society. If Hans has connections like any other rich asshole, someone could easily tip him off that you were spotted there.”

“I don’t think anyone would-”

“This is bad. You can’t go back there,” he muttered, his mind starting to race out of control, horrible memories flooding back and making his blood run cold.

“But, my bag, my clothes-”

“You can’t go back there!”

He hadn’t meant to shout. The way she recoiled to the sudden volume in the small confines of his car, made his him sick to his stomach. 

“Listen,” he said, making his voice as soft and apologetic as he could. “We’ll figure this out, okay. Do you still have your room key?”

She nodded, her back still pressed against the car door.

Wait a minute… was she shaking?

Kristoff suddenly felt low. Almost as low as he ever had. But there were more pressing matters than his own self-loathing.

“Here’s what we are going to do. I have a hooded jacket it my trunk. You’re going to slip it on and pull the hood down low over your eyes and you’re going to sit in the car while I go get your things. Don’t look around while I‘m gone. Stare at your feet and keep your face hidden. I might be a while, so don’t freak out okay? Just… just keep your head down.”

“What… what are you going to do?”

She was on the verge of tears and he knew it was because his voice was laden with panic. He needed to get a grip on himself right now and stop scaring her. That and _never again_ think about how beautiful she would look without all the paint.

“I’m going to find out if anyone has recognized you, or asked about you. I need to make sure you are in the clear.”

“How are you going to do that?” she whispered.

Kristoff sighed. “It’s probably better if you didn’t know.”


	3. Chapter 3

After Anna was hidden as much as possible, Kristoff went back to the trunk of his car. He opened the black duffle that was packed with his tools of the trade and surveyed what he would need.

First, he slipped off his trench coat and suit jacket. Quickly, he slid the holster that held his revolver over his shoulders and put his jacket back on, hoping no one had seen. They were parked at the mouth of a dark alley and the street was silent, but there were still plenty of windows towering above them in all directions.

He slid his coat back on and reached down into the bag to grab the detective badge that he had liberated from a drunk off-duty cop in a bar about a decade ago. Kristoff had no qualms about it; the guy was dirty and had it coming. It was the old style badge though, and would never pass close inspection, not to mention all sorts of red flags would be raised if anyone decided to check on the badge number, but it would do in a pinch to flash it in someone’s direction and have them instantly believe he was legit.

Next, he tucked a half full notebook and pen into a breast pocket, slipped in some business cards along with them, then slammed the trunk shut.

Even through the back window and the darkness that encased the car, he could see Anna’s form jerk with surprise in her seat. To her credit, she didn’t look up and resettled herself qickly.

Kristoff tried to imagine what she was going through and came up blank. The world was different for women and he would be the first to acknowledge that and advocate for change, but it still didn’t help him understand just exactly what it was like.

He imagined it to be a nightmare.

He had seen it be a nightmare.

Hell, he had lived alongside the direct effects of that nightmare. Twice.

That’s why his goal was to expose predators. He would have actually become a cop except for stupid bureaucracy. A misdemeanour charge when he was freshly eighteen over a bag of crack that he had been caught with, landed him a year in jail.

It was all a misunderstanding. He was protecting him, yet again; his damn younger adopted brother. His parents asked him to look out for him, not having any idea what that actually meant. The kid was a reckless idiot. Kristoff had caught him making a purchase and chased off the drug dealer before he was given any cash. He was standing there holding the bag of drugs, giving his younger brother shit for being so fucking stupid, when the sirens stared wailing and red and blue lights were flashing everywhere.

He was caught holding the bag so he was sent to prison.

No one believed their story. It was the cop’s word against a known underage delinquent and a big, pissed-off tough looking guy who was in possession.

Open and shut. Kristoff was locked up.

He came out a different person. Nothing happened to him in the sense that prison things notoriously happen in a sexual nature, he made sure of that with his size and his fists, but it was everything else. It was fighting that, fighting to keep out of the infirmary, fighting to stay alive, fighting with his very sanity…

Basically, a living nightmare.

He lived the best he could, being what the guards and warden would describe as a model inmate. Still, when he was up for his first parole after six months, the committee decided he looked too dangerous and was highly likely to re-offend. It was preposterous. He was big sure, but he was just a blond, mop-haired _kid._

Still, he was denied.

The next month he was cynical, showed it, and was denied again.

After that he was forced to wait until the remainder of his sentence to be release. He didn’t get angry about it then, he just accepted it, thinking that the whole system that he had once thought so much of, was hopelessly flawed and would be forever.

It didn’t stop the drive to hunt the criminal though. After he got out, he took menial jobs and lived in his car while he concentrated on learning anything and everything he would ever need to know about private investigation and hand-to-hand combat.

He trained, in everything he could get his hands on, while he became more familiar with the craft. There was nothing he didn’t throw himself into, knowing full well there was plenty of opportunity to be thrown into dangerous, perhaps even life or death situations. After five years of being exhausted, sore, hungry and almost destitute, he finally opened his small office above a shady Chinese restaurant in Hells Kitchen.

This was where he had basically lived his life for the past decade. There were so many nights he didn’t go home, sleeping on the couch tucked in the corner of his office, that he was amazed the management staff at his building hadn’t declared him legally missing and sold all his shit. 

A rough life that led him to the thing he felt he was meant to do. It was helping people, even if it was in the most back-alley sort of ways.

That was why his parents understood his decisions. They had apologized, of course, but Kristoff waved them off, assuring them it wasn’t their fault, because it wasn’t. They took in a kid, they tried so hard with him, but he was that one drug purchase away from too far gone if Kristoff hadn’t stopped it.

Kristoff hadn’t been home for fourteen years. It pained him not to see them, but he thought about all the people he was able to prove guilty of committing crimes, some of them major crimes, and it all felt justified.

He just wanted to protect his family from his shitty life.

It was the nights he laid awake that made him feel different, wondering what the fuck he was actually doing, what he wanted for the future, because it simply couldn’t be just this… could it? 

Then again, something in his soul knew that the job was worth it. Just as it knew the job would also be the death of him.

As much as he hated what he had become, he was still resolute in the fact that he was protecting an innocent that night, even if it did cost him his own future. That kid was raised in a home so broken that it would give anyone nightmares, and still Kristoff’s adoptive parents had seen his potential. They were not wrong. Five years after skipping out on being charged as a minor, even though that didn’t mean spit compared to Kristoff went through, the kid worked to put himself through school and gradated college with a degree in software, whatever the fuck that was. Kristoff had heard of the age of computers coming but it was nowhere on his radar to give a shit about it.

At least the little fucker had done something with his life. It would have all been for naught if the kid wound up dead.

A passing car pulled Kristoff from his dark memories. He reminded himself that he was on a mission, a very important one for someone that was able to touch his soul in ways he still didn’t understand.

He trudged forward to the hotel that was three blocks away without a look back into the cab of his car at Anna, determined to protect her at any cost.

~ ~ ~

Anna looked at her feet, tapping tapping tapping tapping… then suddenly she was shaking her foot at her ankle, staring at the nervous act like she was having some kind of out of body experience.

_Kristoff said to keep your head down._

She wanted to look up so badly. None of this seemed necessary in her mind, but the way Kristoff had reacted to finding out where she was staying, had her questioning her sanity. He was clearly scared, which made her scared, but she had no idea why there was a reason to feel that way.

She understood that if Hans caught wind of what she was up to it would indeed be very bad. He would yell at her, sure, but it’s not like he would smack her around or anything.

_Or would he? There was that one time he was so mad he raised his fist to you. He ended up punching the wall but you thought for a second that he was going to punch you, in case you forgot._

Ever since her sister had raised concerns, Anna had been defiant in Hans’s innocence. Perhaps that was because their relationship was still in the process of being repaired and she still bristled anytime Elsa tried to assert herself over her life. 

Yet ever since she met Kristoff, that defiance of her fiancé was being chipped away. 

The truth was, she did have some suspicions that he could _possibly_ cheating. It was a rare night that he was home before midnight. Then again, Hans told her that to grow his business he relied heavily on making connections which meant taking people out to party and footing the bill.

Anna had her own social nightlife as well, even if she was home a lot more nights than Hans. As far as any of her friends were concerned – _they’re only acquaintances, nothing more and you know that_ – she was just some rich socialite who could go drinking and dancing whenever she wanted to, all she had to do was call up her other rich young cohorts and see who was up for it. No one in America knew she was Royalty to her own small country and she wanted to keep it that way.

Hans had different opinions on that matter that he said they would address after they were married, but Anna just thought of that as a problem for another time and didn’t let it concern her.

Thinking back now, perhaps that was rather stupid on her part.

Regardless, they still did plenty of things together. They slept in late and had rich, satisfying brunches before he would go to work and Anna would work out in their home gym, then do her daily volunteering before eating a light lunch, usually on her own. Then she would read the afternoon away or brush up on her many _skills_ that Kristoff seemed to be so in tune to even if he didn’t know anything about her…

She let out a long sigh. Kristoff told her to think about all the times she had seen something that was out of place but her mind came up blank. Aside from the fact that Hans was out late most nights, there was nothing to suggest that he was cheating on her. No lipstick stains on his collar, no smell of perfume, no long strands of hair, nothing.

Still, Kristoff seemed so sure. She didn’t know him, should not put her blind faith in his opinion, but something deep down inside trusted him. Despite the fact that he had shouted at her earlier, while it certainly scared her with his volume, she felt safe with him. He really did exude confidence in his ability to handle this situation for her.

Well, at least he _did_ , until about an hour ago when he found out where she had checked herself in. His panic to hear where she was staying and was now off doing God knows what to make sure no one realized she was there, had her wondering just what the hell he thought was going on.

How long had he been gone anyway? It felt like hours. Anna wished she would have worn her watch so she could glance at the time. What if he didn’t come back? No that’s stupid, of course he was going to come back. But what if-

Suddenly there was a tap on the car window beside her head, startling her so badly she let out a scream.

~ ~ ~

Kristoff stood at the edge of the lobby with his face hidden behind a newspaper while he waited for a manager to show up. He needed someone with authority.

Finally, a man in the expensive suit and shiny gold nametag showed up at the check-in desk and started asking about the evening’s events. The night-manager; exactly who Kristoff had been waiting for.

Kristoff folded up the paper and dropped it back onto the chair it had been sitting on. Rather than stroll casually up to the desk he walked forward with purpose, right to the young manager who looked like this could very well be his first day on the job. 

_Perfect._

“Good Evening,” he read the man’s nametag, “Greg.” Kristoff pulled the badge from the pocket of his trench coat and flashed it quickly before slipping it back. “I’m detective Anders with the 40th precinct and I am here investigating a woman we have in custody who has apparently been blackmailing some rich and powerful men with sensitive matters that have been going on right here in your hotel. It’s a very hush hush. These men would like this matter rapped up quickly and quietly, as I am sure you can understand.”

The look of surprise and unease on the young mans face was evident this was going to go better than Kristoff ever thought it could.

“This woman has re-” Kristoff cleared his throat, astounded with his near slip up. She was so far in his mind now that he didn’t even acknowledge the colour she had died her hair anymore. “Apologies. She is a blonde, about five foot three, petite, usually wears large sunglasses with a hat or scarf or may have been wearing white gloves. Expensive clothing and accessories. Have you seen her around here?”

“Um, no, I don’t think so. I, I can’t be sure, I do see a lot of people. But I can certainly check with my staff and-”

“Do you have security cameras?”

“Yes, of course.”

_Of fucking course. I need to get this wrapped up quickly._

“I need you to show me to your security office so I can look through the tapes for evidence of her in the hotel.”

“Oh, by all means. Right this way.”

Kristoff followed the young man through a _staff only_ door off the side of the check in desk area and down a short hallway to a room at the end on the right. He punched a code into the panel on the door and there was a click as a heavy lock disengaged. It was likely that the hotel’s safe was also located in this room.

He was led in to see two men now looking curiously over at who their tailing behind their manager.

“Lewis, Rob, this is-”

Kristoff interrupted the man. “I am detective Anders with the 40th precinct,” he reached into his pocket and flashed his badge, “And I need to review the security tapes for the last three days.” He only needed the ones from today but this was part of the story he was about to sell.

“Oh, okay.” Lewis or Rob got up and went to a bookcase full of VHS tapes. “Here is the block from yesterday and it goes back as you go down.”

“I also need all the tapes from today, including the ones you’re on right now. You’ll have to put some fresh ones in.”

The three other men in the room looked at each other with unease. Kristoff needed to get to get the fuck out of this as soon as possible before this went beyond the people in this room.

“Of course,” Greg said. “You can review any tapes you need to. We can set you up on one of the monitors and-”

“I don’t have time right now. I need to confiscate the tapes and take them back to the precinct to be logged as evidence and reviewed.”

Now the three men looked even more uneasy so Kristoff took control of the mood with his feigned authority.

“Rob, Lewis, can you please gather all the tapes for the last three days. Make sure you include all the ones from today, I believe they are the most incriminating ones. I will be back very shortly to collect them.”

The tapes were somewhat inconsequential but Kristoff wanted to cover his tracks just in case. Better to have them in his possession and not someone who was on team Hans if this all went south. Maybe it wouldn’t even hurt to actually review the ones Anna might be on. He would certainly recognise any of Hans’s body guards if they were caught sniffing around on tape.

He turned back to Greg. “Do you have somewhere private where we can talk?”

“Yes, of course. The manager office is right across the hall.”

Kristoff followed Greg out of the room and directly across the hall to a small office with two desks. They went to the one on the left and while Greg sat behind it, Kristoff took the only available chair in front and started talking immediately.

“Can I speak frankly with you Greg?”

“Of course,” he nodded enthusiastically.

“I am going to go upstairs and gather evidence from her room while I need you to start asking your staff if they remember seeing the woman in the hotel. More importantly, I need you to find out if anyone, and I do mean anyone, has approached any member of your team and asked for any information regarding the woman I described.”

“Why would-”

Kristoff held up his hand. “You understand what I am about to tell you is very sensitive to the case. I can’t really give you too much information but I need you to appreciate how imperative this information is.”

Greg only nodded quickly.

“This woman made some poor choices in trying to blackmail these guys for money. What makes this a little delicate for me, is her motivation. There are some seriously nasty dudes after her for money she owes them for a gambling addiction and she needed cash as fast as possible. Essentially, she had her back against the wall.

“Naturally, being a beautiful shapely blonde, she used her body to get what she needed. She will be processed for it if any of these rich married guys are dumb enough to press charges even thought she didn’t release anything to incriminate them yet, but my problem is these three bad players that I need to take out of the game. You understand?”

“Yes.” Greg hadn’t stopped nodding since Kristoff started weaving his tale. The more complicated, the more believable. He had done this many times before.

“You seem like a smart and reasonable guy, Greg.”

“Sure, yes.”

“I know you wont blab to anyone about me being a little hot under the collar to get a hold of these nasty criminals, will you? And I’ll bet that you are going to be very diligent in talking to all of your staff and making sure that if anyone knows anything, they tell you.”

“Absolutely, sir. I will.”

He got a _sir_. Good. 

“And I know that you won’t repeat what I have told you to anyone, right?”

Now the manager’s head was shaking quickly back and forth. “Absolutely not.”

“I don’t expect you to start calling employees who are off right now at home, but I would like you to be as quick with this as possible when you see them for their next shift, even if you happen to be finished yours. I can’t bring anyone else in on this, and I probably shouldn’t have even told you, but the sooner we lock up this threat to the public, the better. Agree?”

“Yes, sir.”

Greg all but saluted him. Kristoff stood and reached into his breast pocket. “Here’s my card with my direct number. I am usually at my desk every night at seven. If I don’t answer, my partner will, and you can tell him everything. _Don’t lose that card, that’s the only number I can be reached on,”_ he finished with severe emphasis. 

“I won’t, absolutely not. I’ll be quick and I can get back to you tomorrow night. There’s only two people who are not on schedule to be in in the morning, but I can call back the next night after I ask them. Does that help?”

“You bet your ass it does, Greg,” he said as he stood and offered his hand. The young manager shook it quickly. “I appreciate your assistance and your _discretion_ in this rather delicate matter. If I can bring these bad guys to justice, there is going to be quite a reward in it for you.”

Greg smiled at that and Kristoff knew he had him hook, line and sinker.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content Warning for violent crime (murder/suicide and domestic abuse)

Kristoff carried Anna’s two large suitcases clamped in each fist with a woman’s large purse/duffle bag/luggage looking thing, slung over his shoulder. Hooked over his right wrist was a plastic bag full of VHS tapes. It was a lot more than he thought he would have to lug the three blocks to where his car was parked.

He was glad he was almost there, not liking the looks he was getting; a big dude with a scowl on his face and armfuls of what were very clearly women’s belongs… it would make anyone suspicious. He just wanted to get out of this neighbourhood and figure out what to do next.

Side stepping bags of trash on the curb as he passed a group of teenagers who side eyed him with malicious indifference, he felt a pang of hate for the city he had known his whole life. That hate had been there for a long time; ever since he was sent to prison. Or maybe it was before that, he wasn’t really sure. Regardless, it was his home and he had a hard time imagining living his days anywhere else, even though there were times when he had had enough of the crime and the filth.

He rounded the corner and froze mid-stride. Half way up, leaning against the ledge of the open passenger window of his car, was a _beast_ of a patrol cop.

Kristoff took a small step back, about to slither back around the corner and out of sight, when the cop looked down the street and right at him. The patrolman straightened up in no time and placed his palm on the top of his holster.

_Fuck! Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuck_

Making his feet move, Kristoff’s mind spun out of control to think of how he was going to explain this. He had no idea how long the cop had been talking to Anna. What had she said to him? Would she remember that he could show up at any moment with all her things? Would she use that? Would she know to use that? She was smart, but she was also in a state of confusion and unease. If Kristoff got frisked, his illegal revolver was going to land him in a lot of hot water.

Or very likely, back in jail.

_What did you say, Anna? What did you tell him?_

Kristoff put a weary and pissed off expression on his face, hoping he could play this right. He finally reached the trunk of his car without the cop moving, so he dropped everything on the curb and straightened to look at the officer like he was a little inconvenienced.

“You the guy?” The cop asked, his voice deep and commanding. The dude was just as tall as him, if not an inch or two taller, and looked like he ate steroids for every meal and lifted weights instead of sleeping.

Kristoff’s mind spun, picking a direction and hoping to all fuck that it was the right one.

He let out a dramatic sigh. “Yeah, I’m the guy.”

“Any trouble?”

“Nah. Nothing I couldn’t handle.”

The cop eyed him for a tense moment. He looked like he wasn’t about to buy it.

_Anna, I sure as fuck hope you told him what I would have…_

“The asshole was pathetic. Acts and talks a lot of tough shit until someone bigger shows up.” Kristoff shrugged. “You know how it is.”

A smirk appeared on the officer’s face. “More than you probably know.” Then he turned around without another word and walked back up the street.

~ ~ ~

Anna couldn’t stop from bouncing her knees up and down as she regaled Kristoff with the story.

“I knew you were going to come back with my stuff so I knew I had to explain that if the cop didn’t leave me alone before you got back. I could tell that he was very much on guard when I rolled down the window because I screamed, but I explained him I was just on edge because I was waiting for my sister’s boyfriend to help me get my things back from my dirtbag ex who roughed me up one too many times and I was worried for you and that I was hoping my ex wouldn’t give you trouble even though he was half your size, and he seemed at first that he didn’t believe me, so I started crying and telling him that I was just so relieved that it was finally over and that you were going to get my stuff and you and my sister were going to take me in even though you have a tiny apartment and I would have to sleep on the couch…”

Anna finally took a deep breath, surprised to be rambling so much. She hadn’t rambled on like that since she was a child.

And Kristoff hadn’t said anything or glanced her way even once since sliding behind the wheel of the car and driving away.

“Anyway, I am so glad that didn’t turn into anything. I was worried the cop wasn’t going to leave us alone. Thank goodness you said what you did.”

Anna waited but got nothing. Kristoff was a sphinx.

She sighed and leaned back in her seat, finally pushing the hood back from her head. She had no idea where they were going or where she was supposed to stay now, but she was getting the sense that Kristoff needed to have some quiet at the moment.

Instead of worrying, Anna turned her mind back to her fiancé, trying to come up with any details she might have brushed off. 

There was the one time he was on a business trip to Los Angeles for a week and Anna had asked how his trip had been the night he got back. He looked at her for a second like she must be crazy, then shook it off and told her it was fine.

It was almost as if he didn’t leave the city at all…

_When he noticed your quizzical look, he told you his mind was a little foggy because he was over-tired from hanging out with hard-partiers all week. He told you he was so happy to be home and wanted to spend some time with you. You had a wonderful night in with him…_

_And he was out late every other night that week._

It didn’t mean anything and yet it did. That was the first time any real doubt had crept into Anna’s mind. As much as she fought it, she had to admit it was there. Buried very deep, but there all the same.

Then again, Kristoff had been looking into him and all his dealings while tailing him for a solid week and had nothing. No ideas, no leads, no direction, except to follow him around. _Nothing_.

Anna groaned inwardly. This was quite the mess she found herself in.

A moment later the car pulled up to the curb of a poorly lit street. Kristoff shut off the car and sat there for a moment, staring out the windshield.

“Where are we?”

“Safehouse,” was all he said before he got out of the car and slammed the door.

~ ~ ~

He was making her nervous but he didn’t give a shit. This was turning into an absolute clusterfuck. If she didn’t get herself killed, she was going to get him killed. Or at the very least thrown back in jail. 

_Don’t be mad with her. It’s not her fault the cop stopped to check on a hooded figure in a parked car, you dumb fuck.  
I should have thought of something better than leaving her there all alone.  
What the hell would you have done with her then?   
It’s not your fault. This is her problem. The Princess came to you, remember?  
Just like _she _had come to you…. And you failed her._  
That wasn’t my fault!  
You are the reason she was killed.

“Shut up,” he told the voices in his head.

“Pardon me?”

Her voice sounded so timid. It should. She should be terrified of him. He was going to get her killed too. He should probably tell her that right now so that she could have a fighting chance of getting out of this.

Kristoff buried his face in his hands and slumped down onto the threadbare sofa. He wanted to scream, he wanted to cry, he wanted to fly off into a fit of rage and punch his fist through every inch of the drywall of this dammed place.

The memories flooded back, haunting him. He knew they would, being back here. But he could _not_ take Anna to his place. There was no coming back from that if he did.

The only place he knew she would be safe and hidden from everyone was the only place in the world he couldn’t stand to be.

He vaguely heard Anna saying his name, but when he pulled his face from his hands the walls were emerald green again… _just like her eyes had been._

The day she walked into his office changed everything. With heels on, she looked him level in the eyes as he stood and offered her his hand and then a seat, listening as she told him what had been happening to her. Suddenly she became more fragile than her tall and voluptuous stature; trapped in an emotionally abusive marriage that she was sure her husband was stepping out on.

That, and her husband was a detective. She suspected that he was dirty, but had no idea what with.

When she told him during a fight that she thought he was cheating and wanted to leave him, her husband told her he would arrest her for selling drugs. He had evidence he could plant and a whole platoon of cops who would back him up and put her behind bars for a very long time, so she had better shut up and be a good wife and make sure dinner was on the table every night.

She was sacred to try and go to the police after that. With no proof of either, she wouldn’t dare. 

Instead she had come to Kristoff.

He agreed to help her and followed her husband around to learn the truth. He caught the bastard cheating within the first day and took photos to prove it. The asshole wasn’t even trying to hide the fact that he was visiting women during the day. But it was months before Kristoff finally got photographic evidence that he was taking bribes from known criminals within the mafia for inside tips. In that time, Kristoff had fallen in love with her, and her with him. They had sex in his office whenever they had a chance, talking about how when the mess was all over, they were going to sell their shitty apartments and take a much-deserved vacation before moving in together.

_Betty…_

It was only one more night. _One fucking night._

All he had to do was develop the film while she pretended for one more night that everything was normal and she wasn’t up to anything. They were going to go down together in the morning and she was going to file for divorce and Kristoff was going to talk to the only cop he ever trusted and get her cheating asshole husband charged and sent to prison.

But her husband came home that night, drunk, belligerent, and started beating Betty down by telling her how disgusting and useless she was, that she couldn’t even cook a decent roast, that she was a shitty wife and the most pathetic excuse for a woman he had ever seen. The only way Kristoff knew this, was because neighbours reported hearing the fight as clear as day through the thin walls before the gunshots rang out.

Her husband came home, verbally abused her in the same way he had every day since they were married, and she snapped. 

Kristoff would never understand her reasons. Perhaps it was because she could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Maybe she just slipped up? Maybe she wanted to see the look on his face when she told him about the evidence of his crimes and infidelity, or she wanted to how angry he would be when she told him she had a new lover, that he was going to jail while she was going to live happy and free. 

Maybe she just wanted him to know that she had won.

Her husband was drunk and livid as Betty finally laid into him, so he pulled his gun and put three right into her heart.

Neighbours reported that there was a gap of time before the fourth shot. Some said it seemed like only seconds and others said it was a couple of minutes. In the end it didn’t matter. However long it took him, he looked at what he had done, what he was about to face, and figured there was only one option left.

He put one in his brain.

Kristoff woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and elated to discover that the pictures had developed beautifully. Excitement tingled his entire body as he waited outside the divorce lawyer’s office for her. When she was late, he figured she was stuck on the train. When she didn’t show after an hour, he knew something had happened.

The drive to her apartment was the longest of his entire life. There was no way to describe the absolute horror he felt to see the black and white’s parked on the street outside her building. The bodies were long gone but the scene was still being investigated.

Numb legs took him up the stairs and down the hall. He didn’t hear the cop who was shouting at him as he walked right up and looked into the green walls of the apartment over the police tape that prevented him from walking right in. Everything looked the same except the carpet stained black from her blood.

He would have fainted if the officer standing guard by the door hadn’t shoved his shoulders back against the wall and asked him what he the fuck he thought he was doing. Kristoff didn’t answer, he couldn’t. To this day he couldn’t recall a single feature about that man. The only thing on his mind was crushing guilt. 

They had that dirty bastard, _they had him,_ and Kristoff should have taken her back to his place.

He didn’t.

She went home. She died.

Because of him.

There was no reason for her not to come to his place that night either. No protest on his behalf, no shame, nothing to protect. He simply hadn’t thought of it. Neither had she. If she had asked, he would have happily taken her with him and she would still be alive.

_So stupid…_

Was it the fact that Kristoff had to make sure there was no issue with developing the pictures with that crucial evidence, otherwise they would have to try to catch him again? Was it the exhaustion of the ordeal finally almost being over? Or were they both just so completely numb to a life with happiness in it that it didn’t cross either of their minds that her soon to be locked-up ex would never know where to find her given only one night, should he be tempted to look upon discovering she wasn’t there and that his dinner wasn’t on the table waiting for him.

_So fucking stupid._

In the following week he nearly killed himself with whiskey. It wasn’t until he woke up on the floor of his office covered in vomit and piss, that he snapped himself out of the stupor. He went home, showered, then drove straight over to her apartment.

Management let him in, grumbling about how long it was going to take to re-rent it since everyone knew it was the scene of the recent murder/suicide. It would be rented eventually of course, but only until the crime was forgotten for newer ones that seemed to happen daily. 

It had been cleaned out, the carpet was brand new, and the walls were painted white. Kristoff turned to the manager and said he would take it. They went downstairs and he signed a lease for a year, he was given the keys, and he went back upstairs.

He sat on the floor, staring at the white walls. For one fleeing moment, he wished he had brought his revolver, then just as quick as the thought came, it went, replaced by crushing despair. For the first time since Betty was murdered, he finally cried.

He sobbed for hours, then finally laid down on the carpet and fell asleep. He woke up in darkness, feeling suffocated with guilt. Without the prospect of a better option, he went home to wallow in liquor once again. 

About a month later he pulled his head out of his ass long enough to realize he was going to have to do _something_ with the apartment. He purchased a sparse array of second hand furniture – bed, nightstand, couch, sofa chair and a kitchen table set – and had them moved into the space. He got everything set up quickly with the idea that it could be a bit of a safehouse; somewhere to stash a client if they were in a tight spot like Betty had been.

He left the apartment with the idea that despite the life that was taken in it, maybe some could be saved along the way.

But he never went back. 

Every year he re-signed the lease. When the building was purchased and the apartments turned into sellable units, he bought it with all the money he had ever saved in his entire life plus a small loan he had been almost too ashamed to ask his parents for. He’d been in the building plenty of times, but he had never set foot in the apartment after that day.

Until now.

Kristoff did not startle easily but when Anna put a hand on his shoulder, he jumped out of his skin.

He made her cry out with surprise with how violently he jerked away from the contact and she stared at him with large unblinking eyes.

For a split second he could have sworn they were green. 


	5. Chapter 5

Kristoff had been gone for hours and Anna had no idea what was going on.

After she startled him, he got up and left without a word and Anna didn’t know where he was going or when he would come back.

The look on his face was one of complete horror, leaving Anna wondering what the hell he had been thinking about. She started to worry it was something she said or did. Was it the thing with the cop? Maybe something he discovered at the hotel? Did Hans know she had lied after all?

Unable to think about it for fear she would drive herself mad, Anna tried to occupy herself in other ways.

She looked around the apartment but there was hardly anything in it. No phone or television. The kitchen had a table and there was a coffee maker and a toaster, but the cabinets and fridge were completely empty and clearly had been for some time. There was nothing in any of the closets, no sign that anyone had been here for ages. There was a bed, places to sit in the living room, and that was it. There wasn’t even any toilet paper. Anna had to use a little package of tissues she kept in her purse and washed her hands with only water then let them drip dry.

She grabbed her makeup bag and did a few touch ups. The layers were so thick that she didn’t need much, but she wanted to make sure that her neck was still covered. It was all purely habitual now and took virtually no time. 

Anna had no idea what to do with herself. She paced the floor, wringing her hands together, wondering what was going on and starting to worry that maybe he wasn’t coming back. She was going to eventually get hungry and have to leave. But he didn’t give her a key. Was it wise to leave the place unlocked while she skipped outside and tried to find some food?

Finally, she heard footsteps coming up the hall pause at the door. For a split second she worried it could be someone nefarious when she heard a key in the lock then the door opened slowly. Kristoff shuffled in with his arms full and eyes cast down.

He didn’t say a word as he went to the kitchen and started to unpack the paper bags. Apparently, he had gone shopping. There was no way a trip to get groceries would have taken _that_ long, but it was clear he had gone to some all-night bodega at some point.

There seemed to be a lot of canned goods, some frozen meals he tossed into the freezer, cereal, milk, coffee, butter, bread, and thankfully, some toilet paper. He shoved the cans of food along with the paper plates and plastic cutlery into one cupboard, put the very few fresh items he had chosen in the fridge, then shuffled whatever else he had pulled out of the bags into the corner of the counter.

With that done he placed the toilet paper in the bathroom and came back into the living room where Anna was sitting on the couch, waiting silently, trying to make it look like she was not watching his every move.

It took a long time until he finally raised his eyes to hers. “I am sorry.”

To Anna, he suddenly didn’t look as tough and intimidating as she had thought when she first walked into his office. Right now, he looked defeated… he looked _haunted._

“I should be the one to apologize,” Anna blurted. “I should have known better than to go to that hotel, I should have asked you about it, I should have been smarter.”

“You don’t have anything to apologize for,” he sighed, leaning against the wall and sliding his back down it until he was sitting across the floor from her. “I’m sorry for not saying so earlier, but that was very clever of you to tell the cop the exact same story I would have. You handled that really well.”

Anna felt the twitch of a smile but didn’t let it show. “So everything at the hotel went okay then? Am I in the clear?”

He held her eyes for a moment. “I won’t know for sure until tonight or tomorrow, but… I think you probably are.”

“That’s good news.”

He only nodded slightly then his eyes went back out of focus like they did before. Shivers suddenly ran down her spine and she wondered if maybe this apartment was the reason for his sudden distance. What happened here that had him looking so forlorn?

After a moment Kristoff took in a sharp breath and got back to his feet. 

“I’ll be back sometime this afternoon.” He went to the door and opened it without looking over at her.

“You’re not going to stay?”

He paused in the threshold with his back to her. “I can’t. I have work to do. I need to get to the bottom of this.”

“You need rest, Kristoff. When was the last time you slept?”

“I’ll see you later. Oh, and there’s some magazines on the kitchen counter. I don’t know what interests you, so I got a variety.”

With that he shut the door without even so much as a glance over his shoulder in her direction.

~ ~ ~

Kristoff’s knuckles were white on the steering wheel all the way back to his apartment. As soon as he was in the door, he made a b-line for his liquor cabinet in his dark place and poured himself a glass full of whiskey. He slammed it back, opening his throat and letting the harsh liquid slide down to his stomach.

It gave him a coughing fit.

Eyes watering and still trying to keep his throat from having spasms, he poured another and drank it down in one gulp. Through sure force of will, he kept the violet hacking at bay, tears streaming down his face as he shook with the back of his hand pressed firmly against his lips.

Five years off the hard-stuff, down the fucking drain.

Finally, the pain subsided and he poured another full glass. Starting to feel the effects, he shuffled over to the couch, flicked on the television and lit a cigarette. He had a lot to do, but he needed a moment to regroup or he was going to fuck everything up even worse than it already was.

Sven came trotting out of the bedroom after a while, jumping up on the other end of the couch with feline grace and walked the distance to Kristoff. The cat was in one of his affectionate moods. Kristoff stroked his head and scratched under his chin while he sipped the whiskey, smoked, and started blankly at the screen.

This went on for a long time. Longer than Sven usually wanted to be petted, and he was purring, which was even rarer occurrence. Perhaps the cat could sense his mood. Maybe the little thing cared about him after all.

Kristoff chain-smoked three more cigarettes, sitting in the dark lit only by the unwatched images on the screen in front of him, before he turned off the tv and took to his feet, causing Sven to scramble away at the movement. 

His head was swimming now, but he needed to get some work done. 

~ ~ ~

Anna couldn’t sleep a wink.

Never in her life had her mind been so troubled by what was going on around her.

Well, to be fair, there were _a lot_ of dark years from her past, but things were better now so everything was okay.

_Don’t lie to yourself, Anna._

The past certainly didn’t matter right this instant at the very least. What mattered was where she currently found herself. She suddenly wished she hadn’t lied to Hans about pretending to be back home with her sister. Laying in her own bed, even if Hans was cheating - which she still wasn’t convinced of - was better than this place.

Whatever happened here gave her goosebumps all over her skin. Or maybe it was the way Kristoff had looked. The reason didn’t matter, Anna didn’t think she would ever be able to sleep in this place.

She gave up at seven and made coffee after thoroughly cleaning the coffee maker. She was happy to see that there was dish soap and paper towel stacked along side the magazines and other various items on the counter. 

While it was brewing, she poured herself a bowl of bran flakes and ate it with milk, leaning against the counter. She sort-of wished that there was any other fruit besides a bunch of bananas sitting on the counter, but a banana was better than nothing. Anna peeled one and ate it while she flipped through the magazines that he had gotten her.

A variety indeed. There was Vogue, National Geographic, Time, Cosmopolitan, People and The New Yorker. Anna grabbed the Cosmo first and took it to the kitchen table with a cup of coffee that was half milk. There was no cream or sugar and Anna wasn’t about to drink it black.

She read the whole thing, cover to cover. Kristoff said he would be back in the afternoon but that was a pretty broad window of time and it was only half past eight in the morning. Anna sighed. She wanted to go out, but even though he didn’t say anything, she knew it would be dangerous if she did.

Anna was very aware that she was in the middle of a shitty neighbourhood. Sirens wailed almost hourly.

Actually, that was probably the reason he wouldn’t want her to leave, wasn’t it?

Anna often found herself removed from reality being surrounded by luxury and privilege all the time. Until her sister asked her to find a P.I. she had never even entertained the idea about stepping into Hell’s Kitchen. Then suddenly she was there, staring at a man who looked annoyed with potential business but had nonetheless surprised her with his cunning and confidence.

Not to mention those mesmerizing honey brown eyes.

Anna was a hot-blooded woman and she recognized a good-looking man when she saw one, but she was engaged, period. It felt wrong to allow herself to entertain fantasy in that way.

So why now was she having trouble concentrating on the paragraph she had tried to read four times because she couldn’t get every single interaction she had had with Kristoff off her mind. The way he talked, the way he moved, the way he looked at her…

_There is something about him..._

It was physical, absolutely. Anna could tell his body was a specimen, even under the suit. And there were other things. The fact that he made her feel safe and she trusted him without actually knowing him. His demeanor, which at times could be construed as scary if not for the emotion he held in his eyes. Even when he shouted in the car, she knew it was out of his own fear and not for anything she had done.

Which is not to say it didn’t startle her because it certainly did. He had so much on her that he could easily snap her like a twig if he chose. The difference was when he got angry, nothing in her mind gave her reason to think he would lash out at her.

_Unlike your fiancé…_

Anna shivered once again and got up to get more coffee and another magazine. 

*****

The magazines were read, the floor was paced, a frozen meal was heated and eaten, more coffee was consumed, and she still had no exact idea of when Kristoff was going to come back. Anna was so exhausted she could barely keep her eyes open anymore. She sat on the couch and leaned her head against the back, closing her eyes thinking she just needed to sit quietly for a little while to rest and recharge.

It wasn’t until the sound from a key in the door woke her up that Anna realized that she had dozed off. Her eyes sprang open and she scrambled to get up only to see that Kristoff was already standing there staring at her. Instead of pretending, she let her body relax back into the sofa.

His jaw tightened.

“You didn’t sleep at all, did you?”

Anna hesitated, then shook her head slowly. From the looks of him, he hadn’t slept either. He was still wearing the same wrinkled suit and there were bags under his eyes

His shoulders fell, a look of despair falling over him. He stood there for a moment, then shut the door behind him and gestured her to follow him to the kitchen. Anna did so, ignoring the waft of someone who has been drinking.

That wasn’t any of her business. Even if this was the first time that she had smelled it on him since they met.

“You want some coffee?”

“No thanks,” he muttered and took a seat at the table to wait.

Full of coffee for the day, Anna turned the machine off and sat across from Kristoff.

He let out a long sigh. “Here’s where we stand. As I mentioned last week after my first two days of surveillance, his daytime dealings seem legit. His office is in a busy building with heavy security and a lot of eyes. No chance he would allow himself to get caught with his pants down at work.

“His lunch meetings are the same. All dudes, talking about business. No chicks, no titty-bars, just places that serve pretentious food that costs a fortune.”

Anna ignored the distain in his voice. It was clear he didn’t think very much of rich people.

_Or maybe he just doesn’t think much of Hans._

“I looked into his company but there isn’t much information I can obtain that is going to help me. The key in catching him is identifying a woman he could be cheating with, or getting close enough when he is out _partying_ all over the city at night. The problem with the latter, is his security detail. Those guys are on him like glue and they are professionals.”

“Hans explained that he’s just protecting his clients and business partners where they are out at night.”

“Yeah, okay,” he scoffed. “Who the hell parties with clients at hotels?”

He was getting angry now and it made Anna defensive. Elsa held the same scepticism and yet there was still no evidence that Hans was actually cheating. She was fucking tired of having other people treat her like she was blind and naive.

“I explained this last week. Some of his clients don’t have much use for clubs. They prefer privacy and anonymity, so they hold their soiree’s in hotel suites with very specific guest lists.”

Kristoff rolled his eyes like he couldn’t believe how stupid she was. “That’s why he brings five muscle-bound knuckleheads with him? He doesn’t have them during the day.”

“They would look rather out of place in an office setting, don’t you think?” She responded in a clipped voice.

“You have no idea what is going on. Open those big eyes of yours, Anna.”

He was by no means raising his voice with her, but Anna’s anger boiled over. “In your eyes I am just a spoiled brat who deserves it if my fiancé is in fact cheating on me! You think I am some naive little girl, just like my sister does! Someone who doesn’t have a mind to think on her own!”

Anna paused, ready for retaliation. The fury, however, left her quickly to realize that he wasn’t getting mad. Or upset. He just appeared sad and once again he couldn’t look at her.

Anna waited, unsure what do to with this new development, when he finally broke the silence, bringing his eyes up and looking directly into her soul.

“Why the hair then? And the meticulous makeup covering all of your freckles? Why do you do that for him?”

She pulled in a gasp, her hands coming to her mouth on their own. How could he see that? She had everyone fooled, she was so careful to hold up the illusion, so much so that Hans didn’t even mention the times that she looked out of place anymore. How was Kristoff able to see her deepest, darkest secret after spending hardly any time together?

Anna buried her face in her hands, trying not to cry and mar her carefully crafted face. Except, did that really matter right now? Deep down she knew that what Hans asked was ridiculous so why had she even done it anyway?

Anna had a feeling that Kristoff knew, even if he didn’t say it.

Now that she thought about it, the progression was so gradual that she didn’t even realize it was happening until she looked like a different person. She always wore makeup, but Hans would casually mention how her skin looked better the more she wore and how sexy she was when she did. Soon she had all her freckles covered. Then it was the hair, how he was always commenting on how blondes have more fun, how striking it would look to stand beside him, being auburn haired-himself, if Anna had gorgeous golden strands.

_It didn’t take you very long to die your hair, did it, Anna?_

The answer was no. It did not. And it was quicker than her decision to cover up her freckles because of how Hans reacted so positively when she did. The affection, the wanting to show her off over dinners and events, the way he seemed to salivate over her… and she had lapped up all the attention without a moment’s hesitation.

Anna was suddenly sick to her stomach.

Just because he preferred her as a blonde with flawless skin didn’t mean he didn’t love her!

_Don’t be a fool, Anna. Anyone who loved you wouldn’t do that to you._

Anna shut the swift coming thoughts down, like she always had. Only this time they did not submit.

_Kristoff can see it on you so plainly. Probably has since the moment you walked into this office. And still he looks at you like he has a tornado in his mind. He is trying so hard to help you and you refuse to see it even though you know that this is costing him a lot more than you could ever offer to pay him._

Anna broke down into sobs. 

When she finally got control of her emotion, she was unsurprised to find that Kristoff was still sitting there, making that hole he was staring into the table even bigger. He didn’t just look sad now. He looked broken.

“I can’t do this anymore. I can’t help you. I’m so sorry.”

“What?” Anna pulled in a shocked breath. She sniffed, wiping her face with her hands. Where the hell was this suddenly coming from? It as very obvious something was bothering him, but Anna had a pretty big problem of her own that needed solving. “What do you mean you can’t help me anymore?”

“There are too many things you don’t know about me, Anna. Things I probably should have told you long before now.”

“What are you talking about?” Anna felt panic grow. She needed him now more than ever! “What things? You made me a promise!”


	6. Chapter 6

_You made me a promise!_

Why had he done that anyway? He never promised Betty a thing and here he had promised Anna he would solve all her problems. Why? Because she flashed him a pretty smile? He went through hell for so long that he didn’t think he was going to make it, then Anna shows up and he forgets that all in an instant?

She really was doing a number in him. He swore that he would never let her find out about how he had failed Betty, but one look at her suddenly panicked eyes as she reminded him about his fucking promise, broke his last resolve.

The truth came out of his mouth in an exhausting parade of words. Easily more than he had talked in the last five years combined. It hurt to tell her. It hurt a lot. She cried, she looked horrified, she looked disgusted… she looked like she didn’t want anything to do with him anymore and honestly that was a bit of a relief.

“That’s probably why you didn’t sleep. And I can’t apologize enough for putting you in this situation. I just wanted you to be safe, but it was wrong and I should have told you before… I… I don’t know what to say. I wasn’t thinking clearly. I… I am sorry. I am so very sorry.”

His voice was hoarse and his throat felt raw. There was no response on Anna’s half required and none was expected. She would ask for him to take her back to Hans now and he could go back to his pathetic life.

Maybe she would even slap him. He would let her. He certainly felt he deserved it.

Silence stretched on while he waited. The table had one big wood knot in the middle, a little closer to where Kristoff was sitting, and he continued to study it as he had been for the last few moments of his twisted tale. It pained him to think she hated him. He wished he could have done more for Anna. He wished he could have been a better man for her. 

“It wasn’t your fault, Kristoff.”

He huffed a sarcastic laugh, not daring to meet her eyes. “Don’t worry, I won’t do anything awful to you, there’s no need to lie. I’ll take you wherever you want, don’t feel like I’m going to leave you stranded in this shitty fucking neighbourhood. I’ll pack your stuff in my car and drive back to your Penthouse or the better parts of Manhattan. Wherever you want to go. I kept my horrible past from you, Anna, but I am not…”

He was about to tell her he wasn’t a monster. Then again, he certainly felt like one at the moment.

The chair across from him shifted on the cheap linoleum she walked around the table towards him. It was all visible from his peripheral vision but he was still unprepared to have her suddenly standing beside him. His heart quickened in his chest.

“I am so sorry that happened to you, Kristoff,” she said. “But you have to know that it was not your fault. It was horrible and not fair, and I can’t even begin to imagine what you had to go through. No one should have to live through that. I need you to know that I don’t hold you any ill will for not telling me. You are trying to protect and help me. How could I ever fault you for that?”

She was breaking his heart and he still couldn’t meet her in the eyes. He swallowed the painful lump in his throat, resisting the urge to let the tears spill over.

“It wasn’t your fault, Kristoff,” she repeated. “Even though I am sure you will continue to blame yourself no matter what anyone says. It was not your fault.”

He nodded, struggling to swallow past the excruciating pain in his throat. He was so close to letting the dam break. Part of him knew that it wasn’t specifically his fault, but guilt was all powerful.

“I… I still need your help.”

_That_ finally brought his eyes up. He studied her face and found the sincerity he was looking for, thinking it would make him feel better. 

It did not.

He was the one who had put her in this tight spot after all.

“I did a little digging this afternoon and found out he has a charity function tonight. Lots of people and a pretty tight guest list so I can’t slip inside. But I plan to tail him when he leaves and hopefully catch a break.”

Anna nodded, looking down at him. “I will go with you.”

Kristoff choked, much like the first time she said that to him.

“I won’t say it again, Kristoff, because I feel like you don’t like hearing it. Just please don’t blame yourself. I don’t.”

Kristoff found the knot on the table again as a tear escaped his eye. All he could do was nod.

Anna walked out of the kitchen and he sat there, burying his face in his hands as more tears came. His heart ached at her intuition, leaving the room knowing that he needed a moment to himself. No matter what he did in his miserable life, he would never deserve the love of such a beautiful person like Anna.

~ ~ ~

Kristoff finally came out of the kitchen when Anna finished lugging all her bags to the front door. She paused when he did, his eyes wandering the scene and realization dawned on him, making him look crushed.

“Please understand, Kristoff. I meant every single word that I said. But I can’t stay here.”

He shook his head quickly. “Of course not, I would never expect you to. I… Jesus, I am so sorry for ever taking you here in the first-”

“Kristoff.”

“Right, right. I’ll take you anywhere you want to go. As I said. Just name a place.”

“How about yours?”

_“M-mine?”_

Anna nodded. It was weird, the crack in his voice and his wide eyes would make her smile if their current circumstances weren’t so terrible. “I would feel safe there.”

He stared at her, mouth gaping, clearly unsure of what to say. “You don’t know… I mean, my neighbourhood…. my shitty apartment… it’s probably filthy… I don’t event think I have any food…”

“We can get take out,” she interrupted him as he started to shake his head. “Please? I really don’t want to be alone,” she prodded with a soft voice.

That brought his lips together and the tornado back in his eyes. Anna waited, thinking she was going to have to think of somewhere to stay after all, when he whispered ‘okay’.

~ ~ ~

He was shaking by the time he pulled up to his street and found a spot to park. He hoped Anna hadn’t noticed.

This was bad. This was really, _really_ bad. He never took Betty to his place with the silly notion It was just safer at his office, but after what happened with her, he made a solid vow to himself that he would never get that close to anyone ever again. And that meant never having anyone in his life know where he lived, _especially_ his clients.

This was wrong. 

Why then, did it feel so _right?_

Anna grabbed her large shoulder bag while Kristoff handled the big suitcases and took them quickly up the two flights of stairs to his place. He placed them down in the hall and reached into his pocket to grab his keys, taking a deep breath to calm his jittery nerves. 

Once inside he took a quick look around his pathetic space to make sure there wasn’t anything he quickly needed to clean up. Aside from an overflowing ashtray on the coffee table and an empty highball glass, the place was tidy.

He took Anna’s bags into his bedroom and put them on the floor, suddenly wishing he had a clean set of sheets to put on the bed. He could wash them, but he didn’t have time for that right now.

Anna was waiting in the middle of his living room when he came out, looking at him closely.

“What now?” she asked.

“Well, um, I need to be somewhere at seven. Then stake out the charity thing and tail him from there.” He shrugged with his hands out. It wasn’t much of a plan and he knew that.

“Then we have a couple of hours to kill. Do you mind if I use your shower?”

“No, of course not,” Kristoff went to the little linen closet in the hall. At least he had clean towels for her. He grabbed a stack, three big ones, two little ones and a wash cloth… he had no idea how many she would actually need, then handed them to her without being able to look her in the eyes even though he wanted to study the spots on the top of her cheeks where she had wiped away her tears, thinning the makeup there.

She retreated to the bathroom and Kristoff went to his liquor cabinet and tossed back a full glass of whiskey. 

*****

He was sitting at his kitchen table, reading the newspaper when she came out of the bathroom in fresh clothes.

And a clean face.

Kristoff’s heart nearly stopped to gaze upon the make-up free skin. His mouth popped open and he dropped his eyes as soon as he realized, worried she would see his shock. Was he even ready to see her in such a way? It had been all he thought about, and now faced with the reality, he found himself timid. He found himself unworthy. Still, it wasn’t enough to prevent his eyes from lifting back to her on their own.

His gaze travelled first from the bottom of the v of her low-cut blouse, to her neck, and finally, up to her face.

Suddenly he couldn’t breathe. 

“Kristoff, are you okay?”

The alarm in her voice brough him crashing back to reality and he realized he had the newspaper bunched up in tight fists. He sucked air back into his lungs and reminded himself that he needed this to remain professional above all else. Even more so now that she would be staying in his apartment and sleeping in his bed.

“Fine.” He cleared his throat. “Hope you had enough hot water. Runs out quick in this old place sometimes.”

“I did, thank you.”

She took a seat at the table across from him and he could not stop staring at her exposed skin. Every freckled inch of it. God, he didn’t think she could be that gorgeous. 

_If only her hair was its natural colour…_

“Are we going to eat before we go? I’m kind of hungry.”

“Oh, yeah, for sure. I will order some take-out. What, uh, did you feel like?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Anna leaned back in the chair. “I’ve never eaten take-out in this city so I don’t know what I would like.”

“Okay,” Kristoff said, thinking of where he usually got food. This was good, think about anything but her incredibly beautiful soft-looking skin. “There’s pizza, Chinese, Italian… any of those strike your fancy?”

“You can choose, Kristoff.”

He nodded. Right, she hadn’t tried any of it. He thought about Italian since it would be the closest thing that he could imagine to the fine restaurants she dined in, except the food truly wasn’t all that good. The Chinese food was great and the pizza was… well, pizza. In the end he ordered from the Chinese restaurant the next block over. Not knowing what the hell she would like, he ordered a lot, checked his wallet when he was told the total, had to take two dishes off, then finally hung up.

When he went into his living room where Anna had retreated as soon as he picked up the phone, he found her on his couch petting his cat. 

“This is Sven?” Anna asked, eyes wide and smile as bright as he had ever seen them, while she scratched the feline’s head.

All he could do was nod, taken aback by the scene. The little animal looked to be in heaven.

“He is so sweet!” Anna cooed. “What a handsome fellow. You are so handsome, aren’t you Sven?” Anna turned her eyes to his. “You didn’t tell me purrs this much.”

If that wasn’t a goddamn sign, Kristoff didn’t know what was. 

He had to sleep in his office a few nights when he was seeing Betty on the sly because his building was being fumigated. Sven hadn’t minded the change in living arrangements too much. Probably because Kristoff’s office stunk just as much as him as his apartment did. Sven was only there for three days but every time Betty was in his office, the cat seemed on edge. He even hissed when she tried to pet him. At the time Kristoff thought it was just because Sven didn’t like new people; he never really been around anyone besides Kristoff after he took him. What the hell was he witnessing now, then? Had Sven sensed something back then that he didn’t? Did the cat know something?

_Jesus fucking Christ, man. Listen to yourself. You sound fucking crazy._

Suddenly it didn’t feel crazy though. Aren’t people always talking about animal intuition? Him and Betty were crazy about each other but did they really know one another? The answer was no. All he really knew was that she was a damsel in distress and Kristoff had the means and the knowhow to save her.

He suddenly had to wonder about a lot of things he probably should have considered long before now.

“Kristoff?”

He looked at Anna. When had they started being on a first-name basis anyway? He was getting way too close to her and this was getting dangerous. He couldn’t think straight when he was distracted and that was one thing that he could bet money on with being around Anna. Especially now that he could see her beautiful freckles.

“I need a smoke,” he mumbled and went back into the kitchen to have one.


	7. Chapter 7

Anna watched him from the corner of her eye as he sat at the table with his back to her, chain smoking his fourth cigarette. It was the first time he had smoked in her presence since the night before when she asked him not to.

Anna’s heart softened further for the big blond man.

Sven butted his head against her thigh at the sudden cease of his affection. She began petting him again while she started to wonder things in the back of her mind.

First and foremost, was how goddamn good it felt not to have all that makeup on. She felt more like her old self… the carefree one. The one she was before she met Hans and became the epitome of prim and proper.

It was all wine and chocolates and seeing the world through rose-coloured glasses with Hans at first. Then things settled back down to reality and were simply as they were. And she had accepted it for a long time. Now, being in Kristoff’s apartment, Anna realized that she wasn’t all that happy with the life she had been leading.

Not that she would he happy with this one. Absolutely not.

But she would be happy with a man like Kristoff.

_You mean_ with _Kristoff…_

She fought back a heavy sigh, not wanting to startle Sven away. His constant purring was very calming and her mind was certainly in turmoil right now.

Hans wouldn’t allow her to get a pet, even though she had practically begged. They were too messy and made the house dirty, he said. Not worth the trouble, he said. Plus living with an animal was below them… _he said._

How many nights might she have stayed in with a faithful companion like Sven instead of clubbing with her so-called friends even when she didn’t feel like it because she really hated being alone since that shit she went through with her sister. 

If only her Queen could see her now, in an apartment in a questionable neighbourhood with a strange man who led a very strange life, petting his cat and waiting for some kind of food to be delivered before she went on a stakeout, of all things.

All to catch her fiancé cheating.

Anna did sigh this time, thankful at least, that Sven stayed right where he was.

*****

It was pouring rain as Anna waited in his car.

Kristoff was across the street talking on a payphone. She could barely make out his form through the obscured windshield, wondering what he was being told.

He had filled her in on what whet on in the hotel when he retrieved her bags, even though she had no idea what to do with the information. She just filed it away for now and concentrated on what was to come; trying to discover if her fiancé was cheating.

Anna was genuinely surprised to realize that now there was a part of her that hoped he was. Regardless if they ever caught him or not, or even whether he was or not, Anna suddenly couldn’t see much of a future with him anymore.

Perhaps it was sitting in Kristoff’s little apartment eating Chinese takeout. It was strange to Anna. The food was foreign to her, but she loved it. Wanted to try more of it. And it wasn’t just that. It was the company too. Kristoff was quiet, she pegged him as such on the first day they met. And yet he still struggled to find small talk, thinking – knowing – that she liked it, even though he must be aware that she knew he hated it.

He knew a hell of a lot more about her than the other way around, after all.

Not to mention the jolt that shot through her body when he gently grabbed her hand to show her how to grip the chopsticks. His hands were so big against hers, the contrast was a little startling. He wasn’t even annoyed that she insisted to use the little wooden sticks instead of the fork and knife he had initially offered her. Had she done the same thing to Hans, he would have rolled his eyes with a huff and told her to be civilized and use proper cutlery. Kristoff on the other hand, smiled at her and told her ‘No worries. I’ll show you how to hold them.’

And he had with his tender touch. 

He seemed to be a man with a short fuse for certain things, but not for helping people in any way he could. Surely that was why he did what he did? Why else would he put himself on the line like that to help people that felt they had their backs against the wall. 

Anna had never met anyone like him before.

He was very rough around the edges, even if you didn’t count the smoking and the drinking. Yet he was also ruggedly handsome with beautiful brown eyes that conveyed his brazen compassion. 

Anna had never met a _man_ like him before.

Hell, was _all man_ , in Anna’s opinion, right down to the way that he let emotion come to him when it was hurting too much to bottle up.

She had also never been as attracted to a man as much as this before. Fantasies had started to creep into her mind about what it would be like to be intimate with him. It didn’t take a genius to read the signs that he was attracted to her and she had to wonder, when this was all over, where the two of them would stand.

~ ~ ~

The street was dark and empty. It was unusual for the time of the evening for it to be so quiet. Perhaps there was an aura about the night that made people feel like they should stay in. Kristoff certainly felt it.

Headlights glared on the wet street as they passed, making him squint his eyes. Nothing about this felt good. His mind was a wreck. Anna was sitting beside him, in silence, and he was acutely aware of how on edge she was.

Hans had left the charity ball, smiling and laughing surrounded by a large group; lots of men and lots of women. They all piled into his waiting limo.

Kristoff tailed the long car to the hotel where he parked quickly and took photos of all the passengers as they exited and went in the front doors. He asked if Anna recognized anyone, but she shook her head and admitted it was too hard to catch a glimpse of all the faces of the women through the group of people.

Now they just sat and waited. The air in the car was tense with all the unspoken words between them. Kristoff had to wonder if Anna felt it as much as he did.

At least she seemed to be in the clear regarding her short stay a the Gramercy Park Hotel. Greg had called the number on the card at seven p.m. on the nose. Kristoff was already waiting at the payphone, chasing away anyone who thought to use it with a look of malice. After the young manager assured him that no one had remembered seeing the woman, and more importantly, had any dealings with anyone asking about her, he promised he was going to go home to get some sleep and check with the two other employees he had aforementioned and would call the next night at the same time.

Kristoff exited the phonebooth feeling only the slightest sense of relief. It was still a goddamn loose end. He nodded to Earl where he made his bed every night between the bench and the corner of a building, and slipped a twenty-dollar bill into his outstretched hand. He had known the homeless man since he slept in his own car. Earl always answered the payphone at seven if Kristoff wasn’t around – under the guise of Det. Anders partner - and reliably passed on any information he was told in exchange for some food money.

There was a deep sense of dread in the pit of his gut that there were a million things he should have picked up on by now; suspicions, ideas where to stick his nose to get leads, something that stuck out, _someone_ he could recognize… This case was as frustrating as the feelings that were keeping him from making it clear.

“I lied… before.”

Kristoff looked over to the sudden break in silence. Anna had the corner of her lip pinched in her teeth.

_God that beautiful freckled face…_

“About what?” He decided to go through the motions, even though he knew.

“When I decided to tell Hans that I was going to visit my sister for a week. I… I was going to try and spy on him on my own.”

Kristoff could only raise his eyebrows, realizing he was too tired to pretend to be shocked.

“I didn’t think it through. Much like I didn’t think going to that hotel through. I should have though. I mean, there was a reason I came to you in the first place, right?”

“To appease your sister, if I remember correctly.”

Anna’s cheeks reddened at that and he could just not stop staring at her face. Her eyes dated between him and the front door of the hotel, where his focus _should_ be.

“Right.”

Anna remained quiet after that, keeping her gaze forward where he could not seem for the life of him to do the same.

“Do you still think he’s being unfairly targeted?”

He hadn’t meant to say that out loud, but he heard his own voice speak it softly in the space between them nonetheless.

Her stare forward did not waver, even if her eyes widened slightly.

“No,” she said after a long moment.

Kristoff looked back out the windshield and kept his feelings to himself, not able to understand how hard this whole ordeal was for her. Truth be told he had never dealt with anything regarding royalty before. Celebrities a handful of times, and he imagined it was perhaps something slightly akin to being royal, but he really had no idea. There was no way in hell he could relate.

He tried to put himself in her shoes many times. Every time it was impossible. Much like it would be for her to put her feet in his. 

“I’ve never seen him grin like that before.”

Kristoff looked back over to her and met her eyes. “What do you mean?”

“That grin. That… air about him. The way he was interacting with… everyone. I’ve never seen him act so carefree before. If I’m honest, he looked like a completely different person than the very proper one that I know.”

Kristoff didn’t speak. He had no right to.

“Even the other night I thought there was something off about him even though he was alone,” Anna continued. “I guess it was the way he carried himself?” She shook her head. “Ah, that sounds stupid.”

“It doesn’t, Anna. It sounds like someone who tires very hard to keep his true nature at bay when he needs to.”

She gave a half-hearted huff and looked forward again. “I’m a fool.”

“No. You are not. Not even close. You are a strong and intelligent and fearless and… beautiful.” He shook his head quickly. “But Anna, men like Hans can see the weakness we often miss in ourselves and know how to exploit it. He saw someone who was lonely and took complete advantage. He manipulated you.”

“A fool easy to manipulate,” Anna repeated with tears in her eyes.

“Anyone can be manipulated, Anna.”

“Not you, I’ll bet.” She put her face in her hands.

Kristoff turned his attention back to the front of the hotel. “That’s where you’re wrong.”

He sensed that she looked over at him but he kept his gaze forward.

“Tell me,” she whispered.

He sighed, not sure if he was even right. “I think… I think that maybe Betty manipulated me.”

He left it hanging, wondering if he should continue, if Anna wanted to hear more about his fucked-up past. He certainly wouldn’t if he was her.

Then her hand was reaching across the bench seat of his car, touching his shoulder tentatively. He was all too aware of how he reacted the last time she had done, and remained perfectly still.

“Something occurred to you?” she asked softly.

He nodded but didn’t look at her. “It was Sven, actually, that made me run through it all in my mind again and again… even though I really didn’t want to.”

Anna didn’t answer, she just waited with her palm on his shoulder. Kristoff took a deep breath and continued. 

“Sven didn’t like her. I honestly didn’t think anything about it at the time. The cat was a little traumatized when I took him in, as I told you, and I don’t have visitors. Well, until you. But I took him to my office for a few days and he reacted really poorly when she was there. Then I saw Sven with you and how much he liked you… I mean, it was almost a year before he ever even purred in my presence….” Kristoff shook his head. “I guess I just realized that Betty and I didn’t know anything about each other. Or rather, I knew nothing about her. 

“We would talk sometimes, when we weren’t… you know. And I always felt that we were on the same page, but thinking back, it was me doing all the talking. I was telling her things about myself and she would make comments that made me feel like we were one and the same. I realize now that she was just saying what I wanted to hear. To this day I could not tell you a single thing about her aside from what she looked like.”

He sighed, eyes wandering passively over the entrance of the hotel. “I think… maybe she just saw me as the way out? Maybe she truly cared, I don’t know. But she had this way of… I have no way to describe it… blocking my intuition? She could keep things from me that I am easily able to read on other people. I couldn’t even tell you what her favourite colour was. I knew yours after our very first meeting, but her… she just, made it impossible for me to read her. And I have no idea why it took me so long to realize all of this.”

Kristoff sighed again, debating weather or not to continue with voicing his thought process when Anna spoke.

“What is it then?”

He finally looked at her. “What is what?” 

“My favourite colour?”

Her voice was so soft, her expression one of genuine curiosity and something else that he couldn’t figure out. _Huh, fancy that_. Here he was just telling her that Betty had him blind and Anna was now doing the same thing. What was it with him and beautiful women that came to him for help?

“Now I’m worried I got it wrong,” he admitted quietly.

Still, Anna waited, her eyes glued to his. This was stupid, he should be watching the fucking hotel even though it hadn’t been all that long since Hans had gone into it. 

Finally, he whispered, “Green. Sea foam green.”

Her soft smile and the incredulous shake of her head told him he was right. 

“It sounds like you were doing a lot of soul searching these last few hours.”

“I guess so,” Kristoff answered after a moment. “I just don’t know what to think anymore. It pisses me off that I’ll never know the truth.”

“I can understand that. But it’s in the past, Kristoff. It’s impossible to change what happened.”

“I know that.”

“But you don’t know how to move on from it.”

“I know that, too.”

Anna paused briefly. “I think maybe you need to start by not blaming yourself.”

Kristoff gave her an exhausted huff of breath. Not news to him.

“Can I tell you a story?”

He could already hear the pain in her voice. “Yes,” he managed, even though his mind was telling him that he still needed distance from her to get through this. His heart, however, had other ideas.

“I went through a lot with my sister when our parents passed away.”

“I’m sorry.”

Anna shrugged, looking back out the windshield. “A lot worse happens to better people. It was just that my sister was so closed off from everyone, even before they died. She had a lot of issues and she struggled with them. I always felt like my parents paid extra special attention to her and I was always on my own.

“It got worse for Elsa after my parent’s accident, which meant it also got worse for me. Being stuck in limbo until she was old enough to take the crown… those were the darkest days of my life. They insisted to lock us down, make sure we were protected until my sister was of age. I spent so many hours alone… so many hours with only myself to keep me sane. I… I know I shouldn’t complain, but it was _so hard.”_

“It would be very hard to be so isolated,” Kristoff offered, his heart going out to her again.

She looked at him. “Maybe not for someone like you, though?”

“Maybe,” Kristoff conceded, “But I can’t pretend to understand what you when through even though I can see it in your eyes. I am sorry I cannot empathise. I do however, offer you my sympathy.” 

Anna gave him a soft smile of gratitude and continued her story.

“The thing that hurt the most about that time, was that Elsa and I used to be best friends when we were kids. Then her issues started and I felt like it was all my fault. I blamed myself. No one told me what was going on, not even my parents. No one explained to me why things had changed so drastically. I spent years wishing I could have taken back whatever it was that I did to drive her away to her room.

“And then my parents died and I thought maybe she would forgive me, but she wouldn’t emerge from her room. She wasn’t even at their funeral! She couldn’t even get out of bed to pay respects to her mother and father…”

Anna started to cry softly. “The council finally forced Elsa to get help and I tried to be there with her every step of the way, but she always forced me out, making me blame myself even more than I already did. I mean, if she didn’t want me to help her with this then she must still harbour some very ill feelings towards me, right?

“Then I met… _him_ … and was swept off my feet in a way someone who has experienced hardly anything can be, and Elsa laid into me about him, making me feel as stupid as ever. Despite how foreign of a feeling it was, it made me appreciate the attention I was getting from him even more.”

“He saw that and he took advantage of it, Anna.”

She looked pointedly at him, a final tear coursing down her cheek. “And I could blame myself for that right now, couldn’t I?”

Kristoff paused, closing his mouth. He knew where she was going with this now.

“But I don’t blame myself anymore,” she sighed, wiping her cheeks dry. “The longer I stayed with him the more Elsa seemed to come around and we started talking and we began to get closer. It felt wonderful, like we could eventually get back to where we were when we were kids. Things are still difficult between us but I can see it getting better all the time, even though I have to admit, I did bristle pretty badly when she insisted that I find a PI.”

“And look how that turned out,” Kristoff sighed, looking down into his lap.

“Kristoff…”

“Sorry,” he mumbled.

“Listen, I know there doesn’t seem like there’s a point to this story, but there is. When you told me that you knew what my skin really looked like even through all that makeup, it made me realize how stupid it was to compromise myself that way in the first place and I blamed myself for it even thought it was him who wanted me to be different.”

That brought him to look at her again, admiring her natural skin like the first time he had seen it, taking his breath away all over again.

“Then I thought about it, and the reasons I had done it in the first place, are no longer valid. I won’t blame myself for them. I will only learn and grow from them and move on.”

“Sounds like you have been doing some soul searching too,” he said softly.

“I guess I have,” Anna smiled.

“Your situation is a lot different from mine though,” Kristoff pointed out.

“Blame is blame. The severity of the situation doesn’t matter.”

“Same could be said about guilt, which I have in spades.”

Anna conceded. “That is true. Guilt is a tricky bitch.”

Kristoff couldn’t help but smile ever so slightly to hear the Princess swear. She was becoming more and more of her true self the longer he spent with her. It was wonderful to witness and at the same time a new kind of terrifying for what it might mean for whatever his outcome was going to be when this was finished.


	8. Chapter 8

It had been two hours since Hans and the large group of people had gone into the hotel. Kristoff bit back yet another yawn, wondering when this night was going to be over when Anna suddenly jerked in her seat.

“Oh my God,” her eyes went wide, looking out the windshield of the car. Her hand came up and she pointed. “I know her!”

Kristoff looked to see a tall and buxom brunette emerge from the hotel, hailing a passing cab as she dashed to the street. He grabbed his camera and started taking pictures as the car pulled up. The woman paused, quickly glancing each way down the street a couple of times before she finally got into the waiting car.

“Who is she?” Kristoff asked, tossing his camera down on the bench seat between him and Anna before starting his car. He quickly pulled onto the street and sped up to take a right to follow the cab before it drove out of sight.

“I don’t know her name but I recognize her face. It was from a corporate event that he put on last year.”

Kristoff pulled in a couple cars back from the cab and kept his eyes glued, following when it took a left. “Were you introduced?”

Anna hummed in thought. “Yes, but not by Hans. It was from one of his business partners in Switzerland. She was some kind of buyer for the company, I think.”

“Buyer of what?”

“I… don’t know.”

Kristoff knew better than to ask that question. He wanted to say something to reassure her, to let her know that she was being manipulated and that this was not her fault. Words escaped him as his heart went out to her yet again.

“I’m sorry I can’t give you any more,” she whispered at his silence. Kristoff glanced quickly at her. She was staring down at her hands folded in her lap with a frown.

“Don’t be sorry. This is not your fault,” Kristoff said, getting angry but making sure he did not direct it at Anna. Keeping an eye on the cab, he kept glancing at her until she looked up at him and gave him a quick nod.

“Did you see the way she looked around before she got into the car? She was told to leave from another exit. For some reason she didn’t. This is the break we needed, Anna. We finally know how to catch him red handed.”

Anna nodded, looking hopeful for a second before something seemed to dawn on her and her face fell as she slumped her back against the seat with an air of defeat. She stared straight ahead, transfixed and unblinking. Kristoff knew she wasn’t looking at anything, she was thinking about one of those little things that she had been blind to. She was finally putting the pieces of the puzzle together.

“What is it?” Kristoff asked quietly, trying to keep his eyes on her and the cab.

“Her name is Joanne,” Anna muttered, still looking out the windshield. “I remember now… the first time I saw her. The corporate event where we were introduced, was the second time.”

Kristoff waited a moment before he prodded further. “What is it, Anna? What party? What else do you remember?”

“She was a waitress on his yacht,” her voice was so quiet.

“What do you mean?” Kristoff took a right, dropping back a little further from the cab after the car in front of him changed lanes.

Anna turned to look at him, eyes wide with understanding. “Hans’s yacht,” she repeated. “He was doing what he called a ‘guys night out’ for the board of directors. He hired some catering company who supplied wait staff and she was one of them.”

Kristoff opened his mouth to ask her more details when she continued.

“I wasn’t even supposed to be there before they set off. The only reason I went was because Hans called me and asked me to bring a couple of boxes of cigars that he forgot at the penthouse.” Anna shook her head, eyes falling out of focus with memory. “Half the guests were there already and the staff was serving champagne and appetizers before they set sail. She… she was the one offering the drinks to all of Hans’s closest friends on the top deck behind the velvet rope. I remember her now.”

“Anna, are you sure it was the same woman?”

“He… he thanked me for bringing the cigars and kissed me,” she said, ignoring him. “Then he promised that he would be back early enough the next day to take me out to dinner. He… he ushered me quickly off the boat, but he kept that promise and took me out for the most romantic dinner of my life. That was the night the he proposed…” her voice tapered off.

“Anna.”

Her gaze came back into focus and she looked into his eyes with a resolve that made him feel horrible and excited at the same time.

“The night of the corporate event I thought there was something about her that was familiar but I had no idea what. Then tonight, before I saw her face when she was hidden in the crowd. Now I know what it was. Her shoes.”

Kristoff furrowed his brow in confusion, following the cab as it took another right. “Come again?”

“Her shoes,” Anna repeated. “On the yacht. She was wearing stilettos. What the hell kind of waitress, on a yacht no less, wears stiletto’s? There were dozens of servers, men and women, all wearing sensible shoes. No woman would serve in that kind of heel all night.

“Then at the company party… I don’t know how I didn’t put it together. I remember being introduced to her and thinking that, with her stilettos, she was just as tall as most of the men around her. That she actually had an inch on Hans. I… I had thought the same thing about the waitress on the yacht…”

Anna’s hand came to her mouth. “Oh my God,” she whispered, slumping back into her seat. “That cheating bastard.”

She buried her face in her hands and dissolved into sobs. He knew what she was going through, had seen it more times than he wanted to count. It was a punch to the gut to finally see the deception of someone you thought cared about you, that breach of trust that always seemed impossible… that stupid idiom; _I won’t believe it until I see it._

Kristoff wanted to comfort her, he desperately wanted to slide her across the seat and pull her into his arms. But he had a cab to follow. That, and doing so would be crossing a line he would never make it back from, a line which he was barely even able to see anymore.

As much as it pained him, he had to ignore her for a moment. The cab he was following pulled up to a building. He quickly darted his car into an open spot he eyed a half a block down. After a moment the brunette emerged and went into the front door. Kristoff grabbed the camera and took photos of her until she disappeared from sight, then tossed it on the dash and grabbed his notepad and jotted down the name of the building and the streets they were on. He couldn’t trust himself to remember them right now.

Anna was still sobbing and he realized with another cold sense of dread that he should not have brought her with him. 

_Again._

He _should_ be following the woman right now. He _should_ be finding out which apartment she was in. He _should_ be leaning on her to give up information to catch Hans in the act so they could both put this fucking mess behind them. 

Instead he crossed that goddamn line. He slid over the seat and had her firmly in his arms, comforting her with soft words as he stroked her died hair.

“I… I’m supposed to call him to check in tomorrow,” she cried. “What do I even say?”

“Tell him you are leaving him.” The words left his mouth before he could even think to stop them. 

She pulled back and looked up at him with her glistening eyes. “What?”

_Back petal. Fix this._ “Leave him,” he said, ignoring his mind.

Anna just looked at him for a moment. He could almost see her thought process.

“Yes. Yes, of course,” she said slowly. 

The resolve was there and he was delighted to see it, but this was by no means the end to this saga. Not with a character like Hans. Kristoff could feel it in his bones; something about the man was more deceitful than even he could understand.

It was the way he had smiled, Anna was right about that. Like he flaunted the fact that no one would be able to get close enough to him to find out if he was stepping out on his fiancé. Arrogant. Fucking smug.

_Think asshole! You want this to be over so badly, but you have to think! Use that brain that you’ve been ignoring._

Kristoff knew there was something he wasn’t thinking of. Something that he had seen before in cases with the rich and powerful. Not that he had worked very many of them, but there was always something lurking just below the surface that prevented the case from being cut and dry…

It suddenly dawned on him. 

“Anna, what does he have on you?”

She pulled back from his arms and blinked at him. “What do you mean?”

“Does he know anything incriminating. Any secret you may have shared with him? Something about your family, or something that you wouldn’t want anyone to know about?”

Anna shook her head. “No. No, I can’t think of-” Her wet eyes went wide. “Oh my God.”

“What does he have?”

“Photos,” she stared, looking over at him but completely through him. “They were naughty boudoir photos I had done for his birthday last year.”

“Is that everything?”

She nodded for a second then became still, her face paled. She swallowed hard, like she was unable to bring forth the words, curling her arms around herself like she suddenly felt naked.

Kristoff waited, silently seething. He had a very good idea of what else Hans had in his possession to suddenly make her feel so exposed. Seeing Anna struggle to tell him, he asked her outright to save her the embarrassment.

“He has a video, doesn’t he? Your little _secret._ Something that he suggested? Something you thought at the time was just a sexy idea? A little bit of fun that _just the two of you_ to look back on?”

Her eyes suddenly focused on him with horror at the way he said that. “You don’t think…”

“I don’t think, Anna, I _know_. A man like that with wealth and power has a lot of wealthy and powerful friends. I’ve seen it. These business _functions_ that he hosts on his yacht are nothing but drugs and debauchery. I am sure he has screened your most intimate moments to all his friends as a brag before they take turn choosing a _waitress_ to take to bed.”

“No,” Anna choked out as she shook her head, looking like she was about to be sick to her stomach.

Kristoff’s heart almost stopped. 

He had no right telling her that. He was letting his feelings for her cloud his thoughts yet again. He would never have told a woman what her husband was doing so bluntly, let alone tell her all of what was usually going on. He was more delicate than this, he had much more tact. Why the hell did he drop this bomb on Anna like that? Was it because he was falling head over heels in love with her and wanted her to be as far away from Hans as possible, not just physically but mentally as well?

Anna dissolved into sobs and Kristoff’s heart broke. He should never have told Anna how bad it was. He should have left it and spared her some pain and embarrassment. Better her to think it was one woman than realize the truth.

“He has a girl in every city, doesn’t he?” Anna wailed, doubled over and crying into her hands.

He should have known she would be too smart not to figure it out on her own. Kristoff pulled her back into his arms and tried to think of something comforting to say to her. Nothing came to mind.

All he could do was say ‘I’m sorry’.

*****

They didn’t go back to the hotel to try and catch Hans or any of the other party guests coming out. Anna asked him to take them back to his apartment and he slid back over to the wheel and pulled onto the street without hesitation.

Her eyes stared out the windshield as they drove and he had absolutely no idea what was going through her mind until she broke the silence.

“I need to find a drug store.”

Kristoff didn’t ask why. He understood then. He just looked over at her watery eyes and nodded, trying not to let the thought quicken his heart too badly.

They pulled up to a little all-night place. Anna didn’t ask him to come with her, but he followed without a word. 

There was a homeless man begging for change by the front door. Anna was halfway past him when she paused. Kristoff stopped and waited as she twisted off her engagement ring with the large solitary diamond and passed it to the beggar.

“It’s real, don’t just trade it for nothing,” she said, then walked into the drug store.

The homeless man was agape, looking to Kristoff for answers. He had none for the man and he followed Anna inside with only nod of his head to confirm what she had said.

She went straight where he knew she would and looked at the different colours on all the boxes. After a moment she grabbed one and turned to Kristoff. 

Gently, he reached down and pulled the box from her hand. He put it back and grabbed the one directly on the left instead; a shade lighter than the one she initially had. She nodded, her eyes trusting and asking him how could possibly know.

It didn’t matter, he just did. Kristoff took it to the till and paid.

They drove back to his place in silence. Again, Anna didn’t ask for help but he was right there with her, finding her one of his old ratty t-shirts to slip on so that she wouldn’t ruin any of her expensive clothing. She sat herself on the closed toilet lid and looked up at him.

He felt there was a connection between them now. Some sort of trust along with something deeper. She knew the darkest part of his past and he was going to help her get away from her cheating fiancé unscathed. As she gazed up into his eyes there was an unspoken understanding between them.

_Together until the end…_

Kristoff helped Anna dye her hair back. 

He donned the plastic gloves and applied the colour, then put the television on while they waited. It was still silent between them. When his kitchen timer went off, he gave her enough towels and sat back on the couch to wait, trying not to think about what it was going to be like to see her as she was made. Or at least as close as possible. 

When she came out of the bathroom, he couldn’t look at her. His place was dark, lit only by the screen on the television he wasn’t watching. Something told him she would want it that way, which is why he averted his eyes for the moment. 

She took a seat beside him, closer than he thought she might, and remained silent. He wanted to look so badly, but held his ground. She had been through so much in such a short time. The last thing he wanted to do was make her feel like Hans made her feel when she masked herself.

“Thank you, Kristoff,” she whispered and slid over closer to him on the couch. Their arms were touching now.

He nodded his head once, unable to respond in any other way. His mind was a whirlwind with what to do next. He needed to flash his ‘badge’ at Joanne’s apartment and find out where she lived to question her, he needed to look over the hotel tapes even though he wasn’t sure if there was anything worth note on them… he needed to get some fucking sleep. They both did.

Then all his thoughts went flying out the window when Anna laid her head against his shoulder.

“I haven’t been happy for a long time.”

Kristoff remained quiet, still unable to read their current situation.

“Oddly enough,” Anna gave a weak chuckle, “I feel more content right now than I have in a long while… and I honestly don’t know how to process that.”

He swallowed thickly, unable to form any sort of appropriate response.

It was silent for a long time before she spoke again. 

“I really need some sleep.” She got up then and turned, standing right in front of Kristoff. He had no other choice but to look up into her eyes.

His breath hitched to see her red hair cascading around her perfect and bare face. He thought he would be ready. It was now painfully clear to him that he was not.

“I am going to call my sister in the morning and tell her. Then I cam going to call Hans and tell him that we are done.”

Kristoff swallowed, his throat feeling impossibly dry. “We still don’t have any actual proof, Anna. He could still release the photos or the video to the media in retaliation.”

“I’ve decided that I don’t care. I just want to be done with him. Besides, if he is aware that doing so won’t get a reaction from me, he probably won’t bother.”

Kristoff stared at her, his ingrained training finally breaking through the cloud of desire. Did those freckles and her now natural hair suddenly clarify his thoughts despite stunting them thus far. Was it because she was herself now and no longer Hans’s vision of what she should look like, that his mind was able to begin to function again?

“What is it that you have on him, Anna? There must be something.”

She nodded, looking solemn. “Me. He wants my money and my power. If he can’t have me, then he has nothing.”

“That makes him very dangerous.”

“I believe that, now.”

Kristoff couldn’t help himself. He had to know. “Did he ever... raise his hand to you?”

She shook her head, almost hesitantly. “He… he came close. I thought he was going to, then he punched the wall instead.”

Kristoff nodded, less relieved than he thought he might be to hear that. 

“If he knew what I was doing right now though, I have no doubt in my mind that he would strike me.”

There it was. The reason he felt like this was all just beginning rather than ending. “Aside from the photos and the video, he has nothing else, right? No secrets, no deep family shame, no other way he could make you compliant to stay with him?”

Anna shook her head and sat back down on the couch with generous space between them now. 

“No. Why though do I get the feeling that you’re worried about that?”

Kristoff’s eyes wandered over her face and hair again, more visible to him now that she was facing the light from the screen of the television. “What about your sister? How easy is she to get to? She must have a security detail?”

“She does. One she has trusted since we were both little.”

“Why don’t you have one?”

Anna shrugged, looking down when Sven jumped onto the couch between them. She reached forward and started scratching under his chin. The cat immediately started purring. 

“No one here knows I am royalty in another country. To everyone I am just another pampered rich bitch who doesn’t have to work a day in her life.”

“Hans can expose that. Use it against you.”

Her head tilted a little to the side as she kept her eyes on Sven. “I don’t care. If I have to move back home or somewhere else or just get a bunch of protection if I stay here, I just want this all to be over. He has nothing that would ever make he want to stay with him.”

_I hope you are right, Anna._

Kristoff let out a sigh. “I think we better get some sleep. If Hans is desperate enough, he will make things hard for you, even if you don’t care that your provocative material might reach the light of day.”

“I know,” Anna said as she stood. “And honestly, I am a little worried about it.”

Kristoff took to his feet and looked down at her. “No matter what, I will be with you every step of the way.”

She regarded him for a moment before she smiled and tiptoed up towards him. Her palm came to rest gently on his chest to brace herself as she leaned in and planted a soft kiss on his cheek. 

“Thank you, Kristoff. I appreciate that more than you can possibly understand.”

He watched, frozen in place, as she retreated to his bedroom and shut the door gently without a glance back in his direction.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> content warning for violence

Kristoff couldn’t sleep. He looked up at his ceiling for a long time, thoughts whirling through his mind despite how exhausted he was. This happened to him all the time, however, and he did not let it bother him one way or another. 

While the biggest thing on his mind was Anna, sleeping in his bed in his not quite clean sheets, he mulled over everything he had looked into with Hans, trying to decipher if he had missed something important.

Anna was going to tell him in the morning that they were through. It should be the end of it. In his gut however, Kristoff believed that Hans did have something on Anna other than the photos and video. Probably something she wasn’t even aware of. For the life of him, he could not figure out what it could be. Most likely it was something that would be very bad for Anna.

Perhaps when she called him in the morning it would be the end of it. Maybe he really didn’t have anything besides a few naughty pictures and a video of a private moment. Was that too much to hope for?

_Yes._

Kristoff knew it wasn’t going to be that easy. Whatever Hans did have, it would come to light when she told him they were through. They would find out why Hans thought he could control her and have to take it from there, figure out how to get Anna in the clear. He knew that bastard would demand Anna be returned to him and threaten to use whatever it was he had to make her do so. 

That would happen over Kristoff’s dead body. 

Sven came to the couch as Kristoff mulled it over and climbed on top of the back cushion by his head, taking a perch above him and looking down with mysterious feline eyes.

_If only you could talk._

What secrets would Sven have revealed if he could. Would he have warned him about Betty? Would he tell him that Anna was special, and he needed to do everything in his power to protect her? Not that he didn’t already know _that_ , at least.

_Stupid_. He was so exhausted that he was becoming a bit delusional, wishing that his feline companion could talk to him.

The cat let out a yawn, his eyes starting to close when all of the sudden he startled, his head snapped towards the door, pupils drawn down to the thinnest of lines.

It immediately put Kristoff on edge. He shot up from the couch just as Sven let out a hiss and tore off of in search of a corner to hide the same time the front door was kicked in.

Still halfway off the couch and tangled in the blanket he was under, the four big men who rushed in got the drop on him. Kristoff was wrestled to the ground and forced onto his stomach, his hands twisted behind him as one of the big assholes kneeled painfully on the back of his thighs and calves, holding him in place as another brute forced his head against the hardwood. He fought to no avail. They had him pinned.

“Well, well, well.”

The voice was calm and sharp. Kristoff knew who it belonged to without having to look.

A second later he heard Anna screech from the bedroom. She cursed and her hands slapped wildly against skin for a moment before she must have been restrained. Still she didn’t let up. He could hear her grunt with effort to get away between her bold swears.

Kristoff’s head was being pinned against the floor so painfully that he thought he might pass out. He heard Anna being dragged into the living room but couldn’t see anything with his face pointing towards the couch. 

“Darling, what the fuck are you doing in this shithole? I thought you were visiting your sister.”

“You cheating bastard!” she screamed at him.

“What have you done with your hair, love? You look like shit. No matter, we can fix that, now can’t we?”

“We are finished! You hear me, you fucking-”

Anna’s voice cut off with the unmistakable sound of someone being slapped in the face.

Kristoff fought then, the rage boiling over inside of him. He gave it everything he had, tears forming from the effort. But with three big guys leaning on him there was no way he could find any sort of purchase to get out of it. Not in this position anyway.

“Ah, and _this_ one.”

Hans’s voice came closer to him and Kristoff heard shoes stop just behind his head.

“You must be the P.I.”

“Fuck you,” Kristoff shouted to the man behind him.

Hans laughed, a cruel and hollow kind of sound.

“I know all about you Mr. Bjorgman. Orphaned when you were seven by an abusive father and alcoholic mother. Adopted by a couple from Queens the following year. Did a year in Rikers when you were eighteen. Got that whore you were going to run off with killed. That’s about it, isn’t it? Your life is quite pathetic, I must say. Although you did manage to give my boys the slip yesterday, I will give you that. Too bad you didn’t leave well enough alone and came back this evening. I had to buy that daft bitch Joanna a pair of shoes tonight since she was dumb enough to leave out the front and be followed by you. Actually… it was the same pair of shoes I bought for your secretary.”

Kristoff sensed the movement behind him a fraction of a second before a heel slammed down squarely into his kidney. The world exploded around him, the bright light of pain clouding his vision and the ringing in his ears threatening to take him out of consciousness. He held back a scream, trying to curl up against the agony and fight off his attackers again. He was unable to do either, and the knee that was pressed against his head, ground down against the cartilage of his ear, making him let out a small cry of pain.

The world came slowly back and Kristoff realized Anna was screaming. He fought again, unable to stand the thought of them harming a single hair on her body. He bucked his hips wildly, even managed to get the asshole leaning on the back of his thighs to slip and loosen his grip. Before he could throw the man off of him, that heel stomped down on his back in the exact spot as before. This time he did scream.

“Grab her purse and take her back to the penthouse,” Hans growled to one of his henchmen. Anna began to shriek again and there was another crack of a hand against skin and she was silent.

Kristoff could barely hear it all with the blood rushing through his ears. Then mercifully, the knee against his head was gone and he was able to whip his face around to see that Anna was disoriented, a swollen red mark across her entire cheek as she was dragged from his apartment.

“I’m going to kill you,” Kristoff growled through his teeth as Hans looked down at him.

The auburn-haired man shook his head slowly. “Pathetic.” He shifted his focus to the asshole who had been leaning on his head. “You come with me. We’ll head back-”

Suddenly there was a flash of brown as Sven dashed out from under the credenza and launched himself at Hans’s shin, clawing and biting. Hans cried out, kicking his leg violently, sending the little tabby cat flying across the room and hitting hard against the wall. Sven scrambled to his feet with a hiss and took off out the open door of the apartment with a terrible limp.

“No!” Kristoff shouted, trying to fight again.

“You two! Deal with this sonofabitch. You, come with me.”

Kristoff watched Hans and the bodyguard leave the apartment as the other two hauled him roughly to his feet.

_Finally._

He let them think they had him under control for a moment as they prepared to drag him away. When the bigger of the two rounded to the front to punch him into submission, Kristoff acted. He lashed out, using the man behind him with the grip on his wrists as a spring board, bringing up both his knees to his chest and jacking them forward as hard as he could.

The man in front of him took two heels to the face. There was a sickening crunch of cartilage and bone and his body folded down to the floor.

The man behind Kristoff was knocked backwards with the force, Kristoff falling with him. He landed with his back against the other body guard and turned his torso quickly, lining up to drive his elbow into the man’s face. He hit him repeatedly as the man thrashed, blood starting to spurt from his broken nose before the body stilled below him.

The men weren’t dead but they were going to need a hospital. 

Kristoff scrambled to his feet and over to the window. He was careful to conceal himself as much as possible by pressing his back against the wall, peering down to the street as Anna was put into the back of a town car and the bodyguard who had dragged her down there slipped behind the wheel and drove off towards the financial district.

He let out a breath of relief when the car Hans had climbed into pulled a uey and went the other direction. Seemed as though the fucker wasn’t finished ‘partying’.

Not that that would have stopped Kristoff for what he was about to do. 

He ran to his bedroom and pulled on a pair of jeans and slid a beat-up leather coat over his white undershirt before stuffing his feet into some ratty old boots. He heaved the heavy black duffle from the floor of his closet and slung it over his shoulder as he marched to the phone in the kitchen.

He could hear voices of concern in the hall now and he needed help as quickly as possible. He dialed the number he knew by heart, waiting for it to ring.

The line was busy.

“Fuck,” he spat, hanging up the phone and dialing again. He did this twice more before the line finally rang and was answered immediately. Yeah?”

“Dan.”

“Kristoff?”

“I would apologize for calling at three in the morning but seems as though you were already on the phone.”

“Wife’s sister is going through some hard times and calls all goddamn hours of the night,” Dan sighed. “What have you gotten yourself into now that you had to call me at three in the morning?”

“Couple of guys attacked me in my place and they need to be cleaned up.”

“Jesus. They’re not dead, are they?”

Kristoff looked over to make sure. “No, still breathing. I also need you to get the heat off my place. I am sure the neighbours are calling the cops as we speak.”

“You never did give me your address, you know.”

“Well now you can have it. I need your help.”

Dan was silent on the moment for a beat. “And you’ll get it. Just give me the info and I’ll take care of the rest.”

Kristoff rattled off his address to the only cop he ever trusted. “Thanks, Dan. I owe you one.”

“Nah. This is on the house. Just let me know if you need help with anything else.”

“Will do.”

“Stay safe, kid.”

Kristoff hung up and charged for his open door when the grocery bag of VHS tapes from the Gramercy Park Hotel caught his eye. It was still hanging from a hook on his coat rack. His gut told him that there was something on those tapes and he grabbed them and hauled ass down to his car, hoping that wherever Sven ended up, that he would be okay.

*****

Kristoff struggled to get into the building. His skin was itching with apprehension as he worked on picking the lock to the heavy door off the loading bay. He wanted to charge up to the penthouse and beat the living shit out of anyone who dared lay a hand on her, but first he had to get in. 

He knew full well the doormen were in Hans’s pocket and trying to bullshit his way up to the penthouse with his stolen detective badge was absolutely not going to work. 

Kristoff was finally understanding the scope of that asshole’s villainy. A little too late, unfortunately. If he didn’t get Anna out of there, he feared for what would happen to her. Along with that fear, came an intense new form of self-loathing that he couldn’t let that get in his way right now. There would be plenty of time to hate himself later.

Finally, the lock popped open and Kristoff pulled the door open carefully and slipped inside. There was no one in sight and he made his way across the space towards the service elevator, looking for a door to the stairs. He found it, tucked down a hall at the far end. The thought of all those steps didn’t even cross his mind as he trudged upward. The only thing he cared about was getting Anna out of harms way. 

~ ~ ~

Anna held a cold washcloth to her angry red cheek with shaky hands.

She could not stop crying, utterly terrified of what was going to happen to Kristoff. He didn’t deserve this. She was the damn fool who tired to trick Hans into thinking she was out of the country. It was clear to her now that he had someone following her the entire time, and Kristoff was now paying the price for her grave mistake.

How could she have been so blind? How could she have no idea that Hans was such a monster? She shuddered for the hundredth time thinking of how she had let him control her so completely, how she had let him touch her… and kiss her… and…

She gagged again, swallowing the bile back down into her stomach.

Poor Kristoff was probably going to be beaten nearly to death because of her. Hell, they might even kill him…

Anna sobbed, dropping the washcloth and putting her face in her hands. The thought of losing him hurt more than she could bear. He was a different man in her eyes now than the one she had hired to discover if her fiancé was cheating. Back then he didn’t even seem real – more like some movie rendition of what a typical Private Investigator should be. But he was so much more than that. He was a human being with a caring and compassionate soul, despite the hard shell wrapped around it. He made mistakes, like everyone else. He cared for her more than he should… Anna could see that more clearly with each passing day.

And she cared for him too. A great deal actually. Perhaps she was even starting to fall for him.

But none of that mattered now. Hans was going to have him killed and it was all Anna’s fault.


	10. Chapter 10

Kristoff didn’t stop his climb upwards until he reached the top, panting and his legs shaking with fatigue. If he managed to live through this, he was going to quit smoking for good. Bent over with his hands on his knees, he paused to catch his breath, needing to be as quiet as possible for the element of surprise. As soon as he could breathe normally again, he cracked open the stairwell door as silently as possible.

Not silent enough. A big man standing guard outside the penthouse door with his back to him, whipped is head in Kristoff’s direction. He was a good thirty feet away, making this almost impossible, but there was no turning back now.

Kristoff took off in a sprint down the hall. As soon as he surged forward, the guard started to turn towards him. A third of the way there, the guard’s hand was in inside his jacket, no doubt drawing a pistol. Almost there, he saw the dull gleam of metal as the gun swayed in his direction. With one last burst of effort, Kristoff launched himself in the air, flying across the remaining distance like an outfielder making a diving catch for the ball.

~ ~ ~

Anna stopped crying at the sound of a commotion outside her bedroom door. Her heart started to beat out of control in her chest. Hans was back and he was probably going to beat her senseless.

She scrambled from the bathroom, desperate to try and hide. It was stupid, this was their master suite, there was nowhere she could hide that he would not be able to find her. Still, her instinct would not let her simply be standing there while he came charging in. She took of in a sprint towards the massive walk in closet to hide amongst the clothes. 

The door to the bedroom opened and Anna pressed herself into the corner behind the rack of dresses that hung there. She reached up and grabbed one of the heavy wooden hangers, discarding the dress of onto the floor. It wasn’t much, she knew that, but if she could surprise him and gain the upper hand, she might have a chance of getting away. Regardless of what was about to happen, she was _not_ going to go down without a fight.

Footsteps charged into the room. Anna held her breath and closed her eyes, trembling with adrenaline.

“Anna?”

Anna pulled in a breath as her eyes shot open, her heart lurching in her chest to hear what she thought she heard. She stayed deathly still, listening for any other sign of the miracle that she was imagining.

“Anna?” Closer now, more urgent.

She could not believe it was him. How? How did he… well that didn’t fucking matter right now, did it?

“Kristoff?” she called quietly, peering from behind the clothing. He appeared in the doorway a moment later, a pistol hanging low in one hand, bleeding from a gash to his forehead but not looking any worse for wear.

Anna dropped the hanger and tore from the closet, throwing herself at him. He caught her and pulled her in close, tight and safe, but for only a second before he let her go.

“We have to get out of here.” He grabbed her hand and started forward. 

“Wait!” She pulled from his grasp and ran to the bed where she had tossed her purse. Then she quickly slipped on the closest thing she could find for footwear – a pair of slippers by her nightstand. They were hard-soled at least. She went back to Kristoff’s side as he moved towards the door.

Anna followed on shaky legs. She noticed that in addition to the pistol in his hand, he had one tucked into the back of his jeans. She couldn’t even fathom how he managed to overpower all the guys that Hans seemed to have surrounded himself with. 

Kristoff paused at the bedroom door, opening it slowly and listening. After a moment he pulled her through. The man standing guard at her bedroom door – the one who had dragged her from Kristoff’s apartment – was laying in a heap. Anna wondered for a second if he was dead.

In the expansive main foyer, it was the same; a man laying on the ground just on the inside of the door. Anna recognized him as the one who had been standing outside in the hallway when the Hans’s big brute had brought her back. This guy though was clearly breathing, if laboriously. 

Kristoff led her down the hall, steering towards the stairwell, and it all clicked into place. She had been dragged up to her penthouse in the service elevator. Even though she was sure that Hans had made very good friends of the doormen, there were still people who lived in the building that they could run into that might raise alarm to see Anna being forced to comply against her will. Not to mention the anguish of her cheek. 

There was no way Kristoff would have been able to just waltz right through the lobby, and there was no way that he would be able to operate the service elevator without a key. He had climbed seventy-two flights of stairs and taken on a handful of Hans’s bodyguards to get to her.

They still needed to make it out of the building, but in that moment, Anna understood that Kristoff had undoubtably just saved her life.

*****

There was no talking between them as they drove in Kristoff’s car. Anna wouldn’t have known what to say anyway. She just kept staring at the bloody knuckles of his right hand as he steered the car, wondering what exactly he was capable of.

She recalled that they had talked about it once. _Training_. Anna had been brazened enough to challenge Kristoff, thinking that by simply knowing a little bit of jiu-jitsu, that she could take him down. He had told her there was no way she could and she understood what he meant by that now, was grateful for it even.

The truth was she never did very well in any of those defense classes anyway. She harboured very little desire for combat, actually abhorred violence in general, but that was all before she found herself in her current situation. No matter her size compared to what she was up against, she would always fight, would not take anything lying down. It was not in her nature to. However, she could not ignore that the forces against her now were just so large. Well, all except for Hans. If she could take anyone down it would be him. But it did startle her to realize how easy it was for a large man to subdue her. The bodyguard who had taken Anna from Kristoff’s apartment had done so with little to no effort.

Kristoff was a large man himself, but where he was broad, lean and agile, these guys were bigger, taller and swollen with muscle. Could probably dead lift three hundred pounds. 

Anna looked at the broken skin on his knuckles again. He had taken them all on, with an injury to his back no less, to rescue her. Swallowing thickly, she pondered the implications of that. Kristoff meant what he said when he told her he would be with her through every step of this. No one in her life had supported her in this way before. The feeling twisted something in her stomach and made her heart flutter in her chest.

They turned down a series of streets until Kristoff finally pulled up to the curb.

“Come on,” he said quietly, reaching into the back seat and grabbing a black duffle bag.

Anna followed as Kristoff approached the newer model Lincoln they parked behind and set his bag down. He pulled out a long tool and a screwdriver and Anna watched him shove the thin piece of metal down the driver’s side window and pop the door open. He leaned down into the car and in a matter of seconds, the engine roared to life. 

Anna didn’t need to be told to get into the car as Kristoff popped the trunk and grabbed some folded-up cloth from the duffle bag before throwing it in. Hans and his goons knew Kristoff’s car; they had to ditch it. 

He tossed the bundle of cloth in his hand to Anna as he pulled away from the curb. It was one of his hooded sweatshirts. Anna was still wearing the silk pyjama set that she went to bed with in Kristoff’s apartment and she was thankful for something to slip over her goose bumped flesh. It smelled like him and enveloped her like a hug, instantly making her feel better despite how wrecked her nerves were.

The silence resumed as they drove. Anna had no idea where they were going to go now. How far would they have to get away from Manhattan to be safe?

~ ~ ~

Dawn had been in the sky for an hour when Kristoff pulled off the highway, his eyes blurry with fatigue. He was in some serious need of sleep. It didn’t take too long to find a small motel tucked behind the more popular ones on the main road of the small town. He parked in a stall and killed the engine. The place looked old but well looked after, so it had that going for it at least.

Without conversation between them, Anna had dozed off about a half hour outside of Manhattan. He didn’t blame her. With what she had gone though and her own lack of sleep, he was glad to see her rest.

She stirred now, blinking and looking around before turning her eyes to him.

“Where are we?”

“Some little town just outside of Poughkeepsie. Stay here, I am just going to get us a room.”

Anna nodded and he got out of the car, biting back a scream from the pain in his lower back where he’d been kicked. Two hours sitting in a car had stiffened his body terribly. He took a few deep breaths before zipping up his leather jacket to hide the blood on his white t-shirt, then he tossed his hands through his hair a few times before turning around and heading towards the little office. Inside an older man watched him walk up and enter, giving him a glance up and down as Kristoff approached the counter.

“Hello there,” the old man greeted him.

“Hi. Could I get a room for the day and tonight, please?”

The innkeeper looked closely at his face, mostly at the gash on his forehead. Kristoff had done his best the clean the blood off of his skin, licking his thumb and wiping it away while he glanced between the road and the rear-view mirror. 

The old timer’s eyes slid from his face to the front window in the direction of the car, and back to him again. “Just you and the lady?”

Kristoff nodded, glad that the Innkeeper seemed content to leave well enough alone.

“All I have available is a single.”

“That’s fine.” He could sleep on the floor no problem. At least this way there would probably be a table and chair set in the room.

“Alright then. Will that be cash or charge?”

“Cash,” Kristoff answered, reaching into his back pocket for his wallet. Having never owned a credit card, it was a good thing he had pulled out a wad of cash before he met with Earl.

He laid the money on the counter in exchange for a room key and went to the stolen car to grab Anna and his bag. Inside the room, Kristoff made sure the ‘do not disturb’ sign was hung on the outside handle and the thick drapes were pulled tight before he grabbed the ice bucket. He filled it from the machine just outside the office and locked the door when he was back in the room.

Anna waited on the bed watching his every move.

He went to the bathroom and grabbed a clean washcloth, tossed in a few ice cubes and wrapped it up. Then he took a seat beside Anna on the bed and gently held it up to her bruised cheek, looking into her beautiful blue eyes.

“Are you okay?”

“M-me?” Anna stammered. “What about you?”

“Don’t worry about me.”

Her hand came up slowly towards the gash near his hairline. He resisted the urge to flinch away, letting her fingertips dance along the skin at the edge of the cut.

“You need first aid.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Kristoff…”

He could see it in her eyes. This was not something she was going to stand by and watch him do on his own. 

“There’s a kit in my bag.”

Anna moved to get up but he stopped her with a hand to her forearm. She sunk back down onto the bed and he put the cloth of ice back up to her cheek and gently pulled her hand up to hold it in place.

He retrieved the kit and took it to the small table by the window. Anna got up and dropped the washcloth on the table before sitting in the other chair. She pulled it over and forward until her knees settled between his and touched the edge of his chair between his legs.

“Lean forward.”

He did as he was told, unable to look away from her eyes, her face, her hair… she was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid his eyes on, truly. Inside and out. He could not imagine just how fucked Hans was in the head for ever wanting her to cover up her natural beauty. 

She surveyed the cut again then rummaged through the kit. She grabbed a bottle of antiseptic, some gauze pads and a couple of butterfly bandages. It appeared she knew what she was doing. 

Anna poured the antiseptic on the gauze pad and started cleaning the gash. It stung like hell but Kristoff didn’t flinch. He did however, close his eyes. Her face being so close to his was intense.

Once the cut was clean, she applied two of the bandages across the cut, closing it as much as possible. Then her hand cupped his jaw and his eyes opened in surprise.

“Where else are you hurt?”

“I’m fine,” he sat back up, pulling his face away from her hand. Her touch was too much for his shattered nerves right now.

“What about your back where… where he…” She shook her head, mouth twisting with a look of hatred. 

“Nothing a long shower can’t fix.” He smiled at her, but even to him it felt weak as hell.

Her stare made him uncomfortable. Kristoff pushed his chair back and stood up, moving towards the bathroom, not at all surprised that she followed him. He crossed his arms and grabbed the bottom of his t-shirt and Anna surged forward as soon as she saw him wince.

It did hurt, he had to admit. That was why he let her remove his hands from the shirt. It dropped back down and she grabbed it and pulled up while he lifted his arms up and leaned over as she gently pulled it off.

She gasped when he straightened. Kristoff looked to see her eyes fixed in the mirror, showing her the damage that he had taken from the boot. He didn’t want to look but he was compelled to see just how bad it was. Turning his head over his shoulder he winced again.

It looked a lot worse than he had anticipated. 

He looked back over at Anna and her eyes were welling with tears as they scanned the front of his torso. Looking down he saw a cut on his peck and more bruising from the blows he had taken during the struggle to subdue the guards, mostly around his ribs. None of them felt broken at least. 

“Oh, Kristoff. I am so sorry.”

His eyes went wide. “You’re sorry? No, no, no, Anna. You have nothing to be sorry about. I am the one who owes you a thousand apologies for what happened.”

Her fingers came up to her eyes, wiping the tears away. “If I hadn’t have tried to trick Hans by making him think I was with my sister, this never would have happened to you.”

“This never would have happened if I did my job, Anna. Period. I am the reason all of this happened the way it did.”

She was already shaking her head and opening her mouth to tell him he was wrong. His palms came up and trapped her cheeks, firm but gentle, making her look him in the eyes.

“I fucked up, Anna. I got distracted, and I fucked it all up.” He dropped his hands from her face. “I should have seen the signs. I should have seen the cars tailing us or whatever in my office was out of place, because I am sure it’s been bugged. Fuck, I should have looked into my missing secretary for god’s sake. I should have seen _everything._ Instead I let you get into my head and I was blind to it all.” He sighed, his shoulders dropping down with his eyes. “I wish you had found someone that actually would have helped you instead of me. You would be much better off right now if you did.”

Anna was silent so he took it as her agreement to his assessment. He turned around and started the shower.

It didn’t take long to warm and she was still standing there in the middle of the bathroom, staring off into space. It wasn’t like he was going to tell her to get the hell out, but he wasn’t going to let any sort of shame prevent him from stripping naked and stepping in the shower. It wasn’t only his blood that dotted his skin and the desire to get it off had become overwhelming. 

Kristoff watched her behind him in the mirror as he undressed. If she was actually looking at him it did not register on her face. Likely she was in shock. He would love to just hold her and apologize over and over but first he needed to get clean.

Despite being bad for the bruise on his back, he cranked the heat as soon as he stepped in, welcoming the uncomfortable sensation on his skin as he stood under the showerhead, thankful for the godawful high-water pressure that most hotels seemed to have. 

After a moment he heard the toilet lid shut and he peered around the back of the shower curtain to see Anna sitting on it. He ignored her for the time being and began to shampoo his hair and his skin, soaping and scrubbing every inch of his body. 

He was rinsing off when she finally spoke.

“He’s had someone following me since day one, hasn’t he?” 

Kristoff remained silent. She knew the answer as well as him. 

“What you said isn’t true.”

“What’s that?” He knew she was still in shock and not thinking clearly. He could entertain her though, if it made her feel better.

“That I would be better off without you. I wouldn’t.”

“How do you figure?” he sighed.

“If I hadn’t have pretended to leave, I would be in his clutches right now. Then you let me come on the stake-out, and if you hadn’t gotten me clear of that hotel, it would probably be the same outcome. You let me come to your home and have barely left my side since then and that is the _only_ reason I am not laying in bed with a broken and bruised body right now.”

She was crying again, putting a sting back into his soul. 

“Someone else could have done a better job and gotten to the truth sooner.”

“How?”

“I… Anna, I don’t know. I just know I missed a lot of things I should have easily been able to pick up on. Someone else could have put this to bed when it should have been in the first place.”

“Would they have protected me though? Would they have fought off all those guys and climbed seventy-two flights of stairs to save me? Would they even know it was Hans who had taken me when I didn’t show up at their office?”

Apparently, she was more lucid than he thought. 

“The only reason I’m not in danger right now is because you let me come with you. How many other PI’s would have let me tag-along while they worked?”

“No rational one would,” he responded immediately and grimaced. He didn’t want to drive this home more than it needed to be.

“You don’t believe me.”

It wasn’t a question. 

“Anna, listen-”

“No. You listen. With how Hans has acted so far, I am in a lot more trouble than I ever could have imagined. The only reason I am not spiralling out of control right now, is because of you. I don’t care what you think, or how you believe you failed, because as far as I am concerned, you have done everything in your power to keep me safe and I am eternally grateful that I walked into your office that day and there is nothing you could say to me that will change my mind on that!”

He heard her get up then and slam the bathroom door on her way out. 

The hot steam in the bathroom was becoming suffocating and Kristoff turned the knob way down, almost all the way to cold. It shocked him enough to put some clarity into his thoughts.

Perhaps she was right.

He wanted her to be right. _Desperately._


	11. Chapter 11

Anna was sitting on the bed with her back to him when he came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist. He dug into the bottom of his duffle bag for the only spare change of clothes he had. Anna had none and they were going to have to hit a department store and get her some things for the next few days.

After he slept of course. He was dead on his feet.

He dropped the towel, not caring if Anna were to turn around now and see his naked ass, and put on the fresh pair of boxers and the plain white t-shirt. For now, he left the jeans folded and sitting on top of the bag.

“We should get some sleep,” he muttered, grabbing the pillow closest to him and sinking to the floor on tired legs.

Anna turned around, looking like she was about to say something when she stopped and stared at him in disbelief. 

“What are you doing on the floor?”

“Going to get some sleep,” he said matter-of-factly, then laid down on the pillow, only slightly concerned with how much worse this was going to be for his bruised back. 

Anna’s face appeared over the side of the bed a second later. “On the floor?”

“There’s only one bed, Princess.”

She frowned at the way he addressed her. “Really? After everything, you think I would make you sleep on the floor?”

“I don’t think anything, Anna. This is my decision.”

“Why?”

“Just… because.” He rolled over and put his back to her so that she would leave him alone.

He should have known that she wouldn’t.

“This is silly, I won’t be able to sleep knowing that you are laying on the filthy hotel carpet.”

“And I won’t be able to sleep if I am laying in the same bed with you.”

He thought that would quiet her. Again, he should have known better.

“Yes, you will, because I am still really scared and my nerves are a wreck and I need some comfort right now and I know you are not going to just lay there and ignore that.”

He didn’t move a muscle, contemplating what it was going to be like to be able to lay beside her and hold her. It was something he had thought about many times, although never under these circumstances. Despite what she said to him in the bathroom, he was still the one who fucked them into this position in the first place.

What were they going to do now, anyway? Kristoff was going to have to review those fucking tapes, reach out to Dan again, follow up with Earl to see what Greg from the Gramercy Park Hotel had to say on the two employees he was supposed to be checking with today…

And at some point, he was going to have to try and get a hold of that fucking bastard himself and find out what else he had on Anna to think he could hold her against her will. 

God, he was so tired he could cry, and sleeping with Anna beside him would be amazing. Still, he could not actually bring himself to move.

“Please, Kristoff?”

That did it. He sat up and looked at her. Anna gave him a grateful smile and removed his sweatshirt before sliding under the covers as Kristoff stood and grabbed his pillow to toss it back into the bed. He hesitated for only a brief moment before following and getting under the covers beside Anna.

In a flash she was right against him, turning and pressing her back into his side.

“Can you please hold me?”

He rolled towards her and did as he was asked. As soon as his arm was laid gently around her, she snugged further against his body, so small and warm and just fucking wonderful. If Kristoff wasn’t so tired, he would have been instantly aroused and worried that it would offend her. However, he was so exhausted that as soon as he closed his eyes and sighed into their embrace, he was already drifting off into nothingness.

~ ~ ~

Kristoff was breathing deep with sleep almost instantly after he had wrapped his arm around her. That gave Anna almost as much a sense of peace as actually being held by him. She wasn’t lying when she told him she needed comfort.

And she was firm in her belief that she was much better off with him than any other scenario she might have found herself in without him. He let his feelings prevent him from being sharp, she supposed he was right in that, but his feelings were what spurred him to make sure she was safe above all else.

His cut and bruised body was evidence of that fact.

And he wasn’t the only one who had missed picking up on things. Anna was painfully aware of how blind she was to let everything get so far with such a monster. Perhaps it was the fact that as much as Anna convinced herself they had spent plenty of time together, the truth was that they did not. It was all an illusion, one designed to keep her compliant. 

There were so many things from their interaction with Hans that she wanted to ask Kristoff about. Hans seemed to know a lot about his past and Anna certainly had to wonder how. That, and what Kristoff’s life had been like before he was adopted. She felt a pang in her heart to think of him having to grow up in a household with an abusive father. Not to mention whatever had happened that he had spent a year in prison.

What else had this poor man gone through that she knew nothing about.

Trying to push everything from her mind and join Kristoff in sleep, Anna was aware that she _was_ in fact, falling in love with him.

*****

Anna woke when the bed shifted and Kristoff let out a very painful sounding groan followed by several curses under his breath. She could not imagine how much pain he must be in. Turning her head over her shoulder to look at him she winced to see how much worse the bruising to his lower back looked. It broke her heart to know that it was her ex who had done that to him.

“Fuck, I need some coffee,” he muttered before going to the bathroom.

Anna got up and swung her legs over the side of the bed, stretching out her own stiff body before leaning over and plucking Kristoff’s sweatshirt off the floor and sliding it back over her head. She shuffled over to the little coffee maker on the same dresser as the television and prepped the packaged grounds and grabbed the tiny carafe to fill it with water just as Kristoff opened the door to the bathroom. 

He went by her with downcast eyes.

Anna filled the vessel with water and emerged to find Kristoff had slipped into his jeans. She was about to ask when he answered her question.

“We’ll head out first thing and get you some clothes.”

Anna nodded and finished making the coffee. It took no time to brew and Anna stood resting against the dresser watching Kristoff rummage through his bag, wishing she knew what was on his mind right now. It hurt her to imagine that he was still in anguish, thinking all these things were his fault when they weren’t. Somehow, she was going to have to convince him that he did not fail her in any way, shape or form.

When the coffee was done, she poured the two-cup pot into the two coffee mugs provided, hoping that they were as clean as they appeared. She stirred powdered creamer and four packs of sugar into hers before walking over and handing Kristoff his coffee black.

“Thanks,” he muttered, taking it over to the table with and sitting with a sharp inhale and a grimace.

Anna joined him, letting silence stretch on between them for only a beat when she couldn’t stand not to ask him anymore.

“What did he mean, when he said he bought Joanne a pair of shoes?”

His shoulders slumped at that and he let out a defeated sigh. “It’s not good.”

“Not good how? Please, Kristoff. I need to know.” He didn’t answer and wouldn’t look at her. “Kristoff?”

Slowly, he turned his troubled gaze over to her and hesitated for a moment before he opened his mouth to answer her. Anna was getting the feeling that there was nothing he would deny her if she asked.

“He meant a pair of cement shoes. It’s likely that he has ties with organized crime.”

“And that means…”

“She was murdered, Anna. Sent to a watery grave in the East River.”

It took Anna a moment to process that. She had assumed it was bad, but actually hearing that he had Joanne killed… well, suddenly it was all so real.

“And…” she swallowed, trying to keep her tears at bay for fear Kristoff would blame himself for more than he already was, “your secretary…”

He nodded, eyes going to the wall and losing focus.

“Ethel. That one I can’t figure out,” he said slowly, his voice barely above a whisper. “She wasn’t there when you walked into my office the first time.” Anna nodded, even though it wasn’t a question and he wasn’t looking her way. “I have no idea why they would need to get rid of her. She must have been… I don’t know… wrong place at the wrong time? Or there is something a hell of a lot more disturbing going on here.”

He straightened suddenly, head whipping over to her. “Did you talk to your sister about me? Me specifically? That I was the PI you were going to see?”

Anna pulled in a breath and nodded, feeling shaky and scared again. “I did. Over the phone when… oh my God, Kristoff. He was listening to me talk to my sister, wasn’t he?”

Kristoff didn’t answer. He shot up and went to the phone on the nightstand by the bed. “Come here and dial your sister.”

Anna didn’t hesitate. She went to where Kristoff held the receiver and dialed the long number that would go directly to Elsa’s office.

“Not working, try dialing nine first,” he said, pressing down on a plunger for a moment to end the connection and start a new dial tone. 

Anna did as she was told and he gave her a quick nod to indicate it was working. 

“Hello, Hi, this is Investigator Bjorgman calling from the United States. I have the Princess-”

He listened, having clearly been cut off from his introduction. 

“I need to speak to the Queen Immediately… it’s a matter regarding her sister… I told you my name is Bjorgman… Listen, this is a highly sensitive matter and…”

Anna couldn’t stand it anymore and grabbed the phone away from Kristoff.

“Hello, this is Princess Anna. Who am I speaking with?” There was silence on the other end. “Is it you, Kai? Or Gerda? Please, this is important and I need to speak to my sister immediately.”

“Is it really you, Princess?”

It was Kai, thank God. He was always very rational and level headed. “It is, and I need to talk to Elsa as soon as possible.”

“I suppose I could interrupt-”

“You need to, Kai. Her life could be in danger.” She looked to Kristoff for confirmation, feeling sick all over again as he gave her a sad nod.

~ ~ ~

Neither of them had an appetite but they sat there choking down a greasy diner meal anyway.

They had to drive all the way into Poughkeepsie to find a department store for clothes and toiletries. Anna grabbed her clothing items with a speed that Kristoff was greatly impressed with. It seemed that she understood the utilitarian ease of jeans, plain t-shirts, boots and a leather jacket. Along with a bra and a package of panties, she was set for the next three days at least.

The next stop was an electronics store to purchase a VHS player. This at least they were able to find outside of the larger centre. Kristoff pulled off into a sizable town between Poughkeepsie and the smaller town they were staying in to purchase one. He was a little embarrassed but also relieved that Anna had a wad of her own cash, much larger than his, because he didn’t have enough to afford the fucking thing.

She had paid the balance without a word.

Then Kristoff had driven them to a place that they could get some food.

He wished that Anna had something to talk about over their meal. It would have been better than staring at their own plates and eating what they were barely hungry for in silence. He didn’t blame her for being quiet however. He only blamed himself for being unable to think of something to say to her to ease her mind.

At least it was clear that her sister was taking this whole business seriously. The Queen had agreed to leave immediately discreetly with only Kai, Gerda and three of her most trusted body-guards that had been vetted meticulously, to a place the family owned in Finland that Hans could possess absolutely no knowledge of. 

Anna never mentioned anything about what her sister and her talked about. After Kristoff initially explained the situation to Elsa and what he wanted her to do, he had given the phone back to Anna and tried his best not to listen in on her side of the conversation. It actually wasn’t that hard with all the thoughts that were suddenly flying through his mind, replaying everything that had happened since Anna had walked into his office.

Things were starting to click into place, and Kristoff was getting a much clearer idea of exactly what had been going on. It felt like a weight had been taken off his chest to begin formulating a plan to rid Hans from Anna’s life and put him behind bars where he belonged.

Either that or Kristoff could follow up on his threat to kill him.

Anna paid for their meal and Kristoff drove them back to the hotel room. They would stay the night there and move to another town the next day, making their way back to Manhattan where this was all undoubtably going to come to a head.

Kristoff checked his watch when they were locked in their room. It was just past seven-thirty; the perfect time to check in with Earl.

Anna took a seat at the little table while Kristoff went over to the phone on the nightstand. He dialed the payphone on the corner where Earl slept and hung up after one ring. He waited thirty seconds and repeated the action.

“What are you doing?”

He could feel Anna’s eyes on him the entire time. “Letting Earl now it’s me.”

This time when he dialed, he let it ring through. His friend picked up on the third.

“Kristoff.”

“Hi Earl. Did the manager from the hotel call for me?”

“He did, and said it was the same story with the remaining two employees. Neither remembered the woman and neither had any interactions with anyone asking about her.”

“Anything else?”

“No. The only other thing he asked was when you were going to stop by the hotel and let him know what was happening with the reward you mentioned.”

Kristoff sighed. He supposed he was going to have to do something for the man for his help. It was unlike him to do so, but Greg helped him figure out Anna’s situation and Anna had softened his heart considerably so…

His mind wandered again to what his future was going to be like when this was over. Part of him just wanted to give it all up and try to live a normal fucking life for once.

Would Anna accept him then? If he worked a safe 9 to 5 in some office and came home with a smile on his face every night? Likely not. His current life was a goddamn nightmare but there was no way in hell he would ever be able to sit behind a desk all day. Not that she needed him to provide anything in terms of income or… well, anything. She was a Princess for fucks sake, and it was amazing how often he forgot that. There was no way domestic bliss would ever work between them. 

The most probable outcome was that he would continue doing what he did until the day came when the job finally killed him, and Anna would go back to doing whatever it was that she did. No point in wondering about it, really.

“You there?”

“Sorry.” He still felt Anna’s gaze on his back. “Thanks Earl. I owe you a bunch and then some next time I see you. I appreciate your help.”

“Stay safe, my friend.”

“You too.”

Kristoff hung up the phone and dialed another number.

“Hello?”

“Dan, it’s Kristoff.”

“Ah, I was wondering when you were going to check in.”

“How’s my place?”

“All sealed up.”

“And the two guys I left there?”

Dan paused a moment. “By the time I got my closest boys over there, the only person in your apartment was your nosy elderly neighbour. I confirmed it myself when I got there shortly after.”

“How long?”

“For what?”

“Until your boys got there after I called you.”

“About five or six minutes.”

_Godfuckingdammit_ he really needed those dudes to be arrested so that Dan could lean on them to get information that could help them. It made no sense. “Those guys were laid out, Dan. How did they get their wits about them fast enough to get out of there?”

“I don’t now what to tell you, Kristoff. I went there with the idea I was going to be making two arrests and instead I tried to make sense of the ramblings of that crazy old lady who would not shut up about cats.”

Kristoff sighed, his heart hurting again over the loss of Sven. “She has about a dozen of them in her place.”

“I could tell by the smell.”

His hand came up and pinched the bride of his nose in thought. “Can you look into someone for me. His name is Hans Westergaard.”

“Who is this guy?”

“Someone who has been threatening my client.”

“And you want me to what, pick him up?”

“I don’t have any evidence, so no.”

Dan was silent for a moment. “Where are you, Kristoff? Maybe I can bring you in and help-”

“No, I’m safer where I am for the moment.”

His friend gave him a dramatic sigh. This was not the first time Kristoff had been so stubborn with the detective. The man simply couldn’t understand that in sensitive cases it was often better _not_ to involve the cops in an official capacity. “Alright then. Give me a day and I’ll let you know what I can dig up. Call me tomorrow at nine.”

“Thanks, Dan. I appreciate it.”

“Take care of yourself, Kristoff.”

The line went dead as Dan hung up.

Kristoff did the same, his mind a whirlwind of thought. He had a feeling that there was something on those tapes that was going to give him a clue to the missing pieces of the puzzle. It was high time to look them over.


	12. Chapter 12

Kristoff stopped the tape again and rewound, then played it for the fourth time.

_The man in the chair…_

He was kneeling on the floor in front of the hotel television, peering closer at the image. The quality of the tape was shit but there was something about the man reading the newspaper in the lobby that Kristoff could not take his eyes off of.

Anna had walked through the frame and the man peered causally over the newspaper at her… and then sat there. Nothing about it was suspicious. Nothing about it said that he was looking at Anna specifically as he had done the same thing to a dozen or so other people walking through the lobby at no discernable intervals.

Kristoff did the same thing when he read, peering around every so often, even if he was alone in his own fucking apartment.

Why then, did he have a gut feeling about this guy?

There was nothing else on the tapes. No one clearly following her, no one looking at her suspiciously. No one paying her any attention, not even the man in the chair, really.

He let it play through for a moment, looking for any other sign. When there wasn’t one, Kristoff fast forwarded the tape again, watching the screen closely. When the man finally got up and left the lobby, Kristoff looked at the time stamp on the video, noting it was thirty minutes after Anna had left.

If this guy _was_ watching her, following her, why would he stay there for another half an hour?

He stopped the video again and replayed when the man got up and walked out. His face was very hard to make out and his clothes were non-descript. Kristoff scrubbed his hands against his face, trying to think of why this man stuck out to him so much.

Anna hadn’t said a word to him since he hooked up the VCR and starting looking over the tapes. He knew damn well her mind was swirling with questions but he wanted to finish piecing this thing together before he could give her any sort of answers.

_Fuck_ he wanted a cigarette. Badly. Only not bad enough to make Anna endure the second and smoke.

If only he could pinpoint why this guy on the video…

Kristoff lifted his face from his hands with a gasp. He rewound the tape again, going back to the first glance up from the newspaper.

_‘I am in need of someone to help me find out if my business partner is embezzling money from our company…’_

“Holy fucking shit.”

“What is it?” Anna got up from the chair by the window where she was reading a newspaper they had picked up and went to his side where he kneeled on the floor.

“This is the guy that was in my office, looking for someone to help him find out if his business partner was embezzling… fuck, he was spying on us in plain sight.”

“What? When?”

“When you came to my office after you told Hans you were flying home to see your sister. He was sitting in the waiting area when you left.” Anna shrugged and Kristoff knew she didn’t remember. “He would have overheard you telling me that you were going to join me on the stakeout. Someone would have been tailing us from spying on Hans that night but they must have lost us when we left the Gramercy Park Hotel because I was doing the SDR on the way to the safehouse.”

“SDR?”

“Surveillance detection route. I always preform one when going from place to place and I’ve been doing it so long sometimes I’m not even if I’m not conscious of it sometimes. As Hans said, they only picked up our tail again because we went back to spy on him.”

“Who is this guy in the video then?”

“No idea, but I am pretty sure that he works for Hans. Maybe he’s part of the organized crime outfit I am sure Hans is in bed with. Or…”

That final piece of the puzzle slid into place. He had been thinking about every moment since Anna had first walked into his office, everything that had happened, everything that was said, untangling the things that didn’t make sense and noting the things that were the clues that would lead him to the truth. 

Kristoff shot up and went to the phone. It was all so clear now and he suddenly didn’t blame himself so much for what happened. After all, how could he have known it went that far. 

Now all he had to do was make sure.

“Hello?”

“Hi Pop, it’s me.”

“Hi Kristoff. Are you keeping well, son?”

“Actually, I am in a bit of a tight spot. I need your help with something.”

“Anything you need. You know that.”

Kristoff nodded, suddenly feeling emotional over all the lost time he had had with his parents. He talked to them often on the phone, but in that moment, he realized just how much he longed to see them. After this was over, he needed to go home for once and just maybe take a serious re-think about his life. The thought of going back to what he was doing before he met Anna was getting more and more distressing.

Kristoff turned towards where Anna was now standing by the television watching him as he told his Dad what he wanted him to do. Her eyes widened with shock upon hearing what Kristoff had thought was going on. After he got off the phone he elaborated and told her a general idea what he had in mind to put and end to her misery.

When he was finished talking, she flung herself into his arms and cried, thanking him over and over.

~ ~ ~

After a shower, Anna slipped back into the relatively clean clothes they had purchased earlier. It was late into the night but they had slept most of the day away and neither of them were tired. That and there was too much adrenaline coursing through her body to even contemplate being able to sleep.

Not to mention the jolt of heat that went through her body to be hugged so firmly and protectively by Kristoff after she threw herself at him. Hence the desire to have a shower. A rather cold one at that. Being in his arms, in his protective embrace, was doing all sorts of things to her.

She stood looking at herself in the mirror, combing her damp hair with a bargain brush they picked up at the department store. Relief to be free of the makeup and fake hair colour, washed over her again. Every time it did, she felt like she wanted to cry. Except this time. This time the only thing she thought about was the way Kristoff looked at her since she dyed her hair back. 

The way his gaze darted around her cheeks, like he was trying to count every one of her freckles, or the way his eyes lingered on the hair that fell over her shoulders, or how she caught him just staring at her on several occasions. Did he have any idea how sensual it was? How wonderful it made her feel?

Hans fawned over her when she pretended to look like someone else, but there was always something so leering in his eyes. With Kristoff it was complete reverence and nothing else. The difference was astounding to Anna, having never been looked at like that by the magnitude of man that Kristoff was.

The image of Kristoff knocking down Hans with one powerful blow suddenly entered her mind and sent a shiver down her spine. Truly she would love to see that.

Her heart quickened at the thought of being intimate with him again – such a strong man with all that inherent gentleness in him reserved for those he cared about deeply. And the other side of him, the one that subdued however many men to get to Anna and save her from Hans’s grasp… that was the side of him that excited her in a way she still didn’t understand. Just the thought of being the reason for his protective rage when she was hurt and being threatened…

Anna was desperate to kiss him. To do much more than that, actually.

He was still troubled however, she could tell. There was still a tornado in his eyes whenever she got too close to him, like how he had pulled back from her hand after she patched up the gash on his head. It hurt her to think that he was still suffering so much because of his feelings towards her.

She wanted to show him they were not unreciprocated anymore.

Only not yet. They still had a lot to do. Until then, Anna would keep her hands to herself, even if it was much easier said than done. 

With a heavy sigh she re-joined Kristoff in the room. He was pacing the floor, notepad in hand. He stopped facing Anna, not noticing that she was there as he tapped the eraser of the pencil against his chin in thought before nodding to himself and writing something down.

“What do we do next?”

Kristoff looked up almost as if he was slightly startled, then his eyes softened and roamed over her face again. Anna supressed a delighted shudder.

“I’m going to call Dan tomorrow night to see if he was able to learn anything that might help us. In the meantime, we’ll make our way back to Manhattan and find a new hotel. I’ll check in with my Dad the morning after and see what he was able to dig up. From there, I will put some fine details into my plan, get some supplies, then carry it out.”

“What do we do until then?”

He blinked at her for a moment. “Um, sleep, I guess?”

“Are you tired?”

He shook his head slowly. “You?”

“Not really, no.”

“What do you want to do then?”

“Honest?”

His face softened. “Always.”

“Can we walk to that gas station down the street and get something chocolate?”

He just stared at her for a moment before his face broke into a smile. It was the first time she had ever seen him do so with such genuineness, and her heart lurched in her chest. 

“Sure, Anna,” he chuckled. “Grab your coat and let’s go.”

~ ~ ~

The cold air was the invigoration that Kristoff needed. It added even more clarity to his rapidly coming thoughts and ideas and he had a good impression of how this was all going to happen. 

He carried a heavy plastic bag full of candy, ice cream, chips and a few various other impulse items. Anna had paid again and Kristoff was starting to get a little bit of a complex about it. She still had a thick wad of hundreds however, and it wasn’t smart for either of them to use a plastic card to purchase anything or pull out more cash. 

When they were locked away in the room once again, Anna pulled out the plastic spoons and handed one to Kristoff. “It’ll melt if we don’t eat it right away,” she said, taking the little tub of ice cream over to the table for them to share.

How odd. He had never done this before in his entire life. It was so simple, sharing some ice cream. Why then did it feel so… intimate? Perhaps because that’s what lovers did, right? They shared dessert. Kristoff was about to tell her he wasn’t all that interested in ice cream when she beckoned him over with hopeful blue eyes.

He wondered idly if there would be anything she asked of him that he would have power to say ‘no’ to. 

Likely not.

He sat at the table as Anna pried the lid off and got a big chunk of the chocolate ice cream on her spoon and put it into her mouth. She made a delightful little moan and her eyes rolled into the back of her head and closed. He watched the plastic spoon slide out of her mouth against her pursed lips in an effort to get all of the frozen treat off of the utensil.

_… fuck me…_

Her eyes opened and focused on his, making him feel embarrassed for staring at her again. He dropped his eyes to the ice cream and put a spoonful quickly into his mouth, mentally telling his dick to behave. Fuck, why did it feel so hot in the room all of the sudden?

“So… your Dad. What does he do for a living?”

Kristoff found an easy smile. He was beginning to enjoy Anna’s curiosity, even if he didn’t particularly enjoy talking about his life.

“He’s retired now, but he was an investigative journalist for thirty-five years.”

“And… your Mom?”

“She was a seamstress and she worked from home to take care of all us kids. My parents fostered and adopted twenty of us over the years. Some of them I’ve never met because they were before I ever went there and a few after I was gone, but I grew up with eight fairly close siblings.”

Anna gave him a sweet smile. “That’s really nice. I’m glad you know that you _do_ have a family.”

That hit Kristoff oddly in the gut. “I… I’m sorry for lying about that. Before.”

“You were just trying to protect them, I get it.”

Kristoff blinked at her. It was clear she was telling the truth and he had no idea how she understood that. Betty hadn’t. She told him she thought he was over-reacting when he mentioned once he only talked to his parents on the phone because of the dangers of his job. Apparently, she couldn’t understand after having people actually come after him before, why he would want to keep his family out of it. Kristoff dropped the subject then and neither of their families had been brought up in conversation again. He had other things on his mind then to let that comment bother him.

Without knowing how to respond to Anna’s incredible intuition, he grabbed another scoop of ice cream.

“Can I ask you, Kristoff… about your past?”

The spoon paused hallway to his mouth for a moment before committing to his bite and swallowing. His resistance for them to learn more about each other was long gone, especially with the way she had been looking at him lately. There was a spark of interest there now, and while that excited him, he was not going to act on it. He was on a different path than her and there was no way anything with them was ever going to work after dealing with Hans.

He nodded.

“How did you end up in foster care? I mean, I can imagine but…” she shrugged her shoulders.

“Well, my parents were horrible. They were both drunks and they were both abusive. Her verbally and him physically. He beat my Mom up all the time.”

“I’m so sorry.”

Kristoff shrugged. “She kept threatening to leave him but she never did. They had a pretty volatile relationship.”

“Did he… was he…”

“To me?” Anna nodded. “No. I mean, he backhanded me one or twice if I got in the way but I was mostly invisible to him. I was removed to child protective services when one of their fights ended up on the front lawn and the neighbours called the cops.”

“What happened to them?”

“My Mom refused to admit that she was abused and no charges were laid. They were released and told they would both have to attend AA and parenting classes if they wanted to get me back. Neither of them did so I stayed in foster care until Bulda adopted me.” 

“Oh, Kristoff. That must have been so hard. I can’t imagine how your parents could just abandon you like that.”

He shrugged, stabbing his spoon into the ice cream and leaning back in the chair. His early childhood had been hell on earth. He recalled years of doing the laundry and trying his best to clean the house, desperate to spare his passed-out mother a beating for not doing the chores. When he started school his grades suffered greatly. He was pushed into a slower-learning group and then into special classes filled with kids who struggled with the basics and was made to repeat the first grade. The problem was that each day he came home on the bus he had to make sure he did what he could for his mom to not incite the wrath of his father. After that, when his parents were drinking or sleeping or whatever, he tired to do his homework on his own. With no one to get help from, he failed miserably. 

There were those times when he would creep from his room. Usually to try and find something to eat because his parents had liquid dinners and weren’t concerned with feeding him, that he would cross paths with his father. The man resented his existence, he had known that since he was three, but he still couldn’t understand why that hate was there in the first place.

He was knocked down a few times. Not punched like his mom, just shoved forcefully to the ground or against a wall. But this was normal to Kristoff and he just did his best to stay out of the way.

At least his mom tried. In the mornings, when she was hungover and feeling regret, she promised him it was going to change, that she was finally going to put the bottle down and get them to a better place. She made him breakfast and packed him a bag lunch and sent him on his way. Every day he went to school with that hope that it would be the day that she meant it, hoping that when he came home, their meager possessions would be packed and she would make good on her promise to get them out.

But it never happened.

It wasn’t until he went into foster care that he understood that a child’s life was not supposed to be that way, and it wasn’t until he met Cliff and Bulda’s family that he understood what it actually meant to have people to love and support you. 

Bulda and Cliff… _his real parents_. They did so much for him and all his siblings. They were Saints, really. They worked with him endlessly to bring him back up to where he should be with his schooling while providing him with clean clothing, a roof over his head and more food than he could have ever imagined having access to.

His heroes.

“Turns out I was much better off without them,” he told Anna, and meant it with all his heart. “I bounced around a couple of foster homes until I landed in Cliff and Bulda’s. They were so much different than all the others.” Kristoff smiled fondly at the memory. “For my ninth birthday my present was adoption papers. They wanted me to officially be their son and that was the best gift I’ve ever been given.”

“That’s wonderful, Kristoff.”

There were tears in her eyes, making his stomach do little flips. God she was such a beautiful person to get emotional over such things, over him and his sad life. He suddenly wished he was more than who he was, someone worthy of her in the way that she deserved. 

“Anyway,” he cleared his throat, needing to get past this sudden change of mood. “My childhood with them was pretty damn great. When we… wrap this thing up, I am going to go home for a long visit. I… I think…” 

Was he really going to tell her this? Right now? What was it about her eyes on him that made him give up his secrets? He was telling Anna far more about himself than he had ever even _considered_ to tell Betty.

“You can tell me, Kristoff.”

He looked down to see her small hand on his forearm. Her touch was so warm and comforting, is mouth opened before he could think better of it.

“I think I’m going to give this up. The whole PI thing. I have no idea what the fuck I would do instead but I… I think I need to move on.”

Anna nodded, looking to be in thought. “Can I ask why you wanted to do this in the first place?” she asked after a moment in which Kristoff was unable to lift his eyes from her hand.

“After seeing what my Mom went through, I wanted to be a cop. To help people who needed help and to make some sort of difference. Then my year in Rikers put an end to all that, so I chose the next best thing.”

“How did you end up in jail?”

“Looking out for my younger adopted brother,” Kristoff sighed then looking into her eyes and telling her yet another one of his sob stories. At least this time she didn’t tear up, even if she looked exceptionally sad for him. 

“You seem like you haven’t known much peace in your life,” she said when he was done.

“No… I suppose not. Maybe that’s what I need to do. Find some peace in life.”

“I think that would be good for you.”

“Hmmm. Maybe. Or maybe I’m just too far gone.”

“Don’t say that,” she whispered.

Kristoff smiled sadly. “Apologies.”

Anna let out a sigh and gave him a weak smile in return. Her way of saying that she didn’t want to hear about his pathetic life anymore.

“After eating all that ice cream, I am kind of tired now.”

He nodded. “Why don’t you get some rest, Anna.”

“I will. As long as you join me.”

He searched her eyes. God they were big and beautiful and sincere. He didn’t want to make her plead again, couldn’t stand her to say ‘please, Kristoff’ before he actually moved. Not anymore. 

He gave her a small nod of his head and they got up together, rounded the bed, and slipped into the same position as last time. Kristoff sighed into her in the same way as the night before, strangely comforted by the sudden and new familiarity, even though he didn’t think he’d be able to sleep a wink.

Not with his anger spurring on his thoughts to put an end to Hans.

It wasn’t long before she was breathing slow and steady with sleep under his arm. It gave him a sense of peace to know that he could do that for her, to help her rest when her mind must be overwhelmed. She deserved this, deserved comfort. Only from a better person than him.

At least he could help her with it for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I am such a garbage human when it comes to responding to comments. But I really do appreciate each and every one of them more than I can possibly say <3 <3 <3


	13. Chapter 13

Anna’s eyes fluttered open. 

Her first thought was how body sore she was. Her muscles were tight from all the adrenaline that had been rushing through her body lately. And she was still incredibly anxious and fearful about what was to come, contributing to her unease.

Then her gaze settled on Kristoff and everything fell away.

He was still sleeping, rolled onto his back sometime during their rest, with the arm closest to her bent at the eblow with his hand resting on his stomach. Anna studied that hand with the broken skin of the knuckles. 

How could hands that guided hers so tenderly to use two little wooden sticks, or hold a washcloth filled with ice so gently against her face, do all that damage to Hans’s muscle-bound freaks. Anna wondered what he looked like when he was filled with rage. He wasn’t allowed to face her, but she could feel that anger back in his apartment as she was taken from it. She could feel the heat of it, permeating the air between them.

And he had used it to get to her and save her from the Penthouse.

Her eyes went to his face, his pleasing profile and his strong jawline, clean shaven from after his shower. He was so silent and still right now, Anna had to glance quickly to his chest to make sure he was still breathing. He was, the low rise and fall almost imperceptible. 

Anna went back to studying his face. He was actually a very beautiful man when it came down to it. Handsome, with an undeniable sexiness, but just… _beautiful._ She found herself smiling as her gaze roamed over his delightful features. His lips looked especially inviting. How easy it would be to lean over and kiss him right now, wake him up with warmth and tenderness, wake him up in a way that he deserved to be woken from a deep sleep.

It would be so easy…

The phone rang, startling them both. Anna let out a squeak of surprise as Kristoff’s eyes shot open and his body jerked upright, following by a loud cry of pain. She was still clutching at her chest where her heart hammered as he moved quickly to answer the phone.

“Yeah?” he sighed, as if he already knew who was on the other end of the line. “Apologies. We’ll be out right away. Thank you.”

Kristoff hung up the phone and let out a low moan as his hands came to his sides and squeezed. Anna’s body was sore only from stress, she could not fathom what Kristoff was feeling right now. 

“What time is it?” he asked through a long exhale.

Anna looked at the alarm clock on her side of the bed. “Half past eleven.”

“Shit. I didn’t think we would sleep that long.”

“Who… the phone?”

He turned his head over his shoulder and looked at her. “Its past check-out. Time to hit the road.”

~ ~ ~

Kristoff cursed himself for even falling asleep in the first place.

He was surprised, actually, that he had. One minute he was fantasying about wrapping his hands around the neck of that arrogant prick, and the next he was startled awake by the phone.

And it wasn’t like he laid awake all night and then dozed off for a little while. He had passed out for nearly five hours. Perhaps his body had been taxed more than he realized. His back sure fucking hurt. There was a little worry there that Hans might have actually damaged his kidney. Well, he wasn’t pissing blood yet, so he would just hope for the best for now.

Anna had been quiet since they were woken. When he asked her if she wanted to find a diner for a late breakfast, she shook her head and just asked to find a coffee for the road. They had done so and were now flying down the interstate towards Manhattan. 

Anna’s silence was starting to worry him. Had him sharing about his past bothered her? Or was she just getting more nervous about her situation? Either way, he could no longer stand not knowing what she was feeling, and he was about to ask her what was on her mind when a siren started blaring behind them.

Kristoff checked his rear-view to see a cop car glued to his ass, then he looked down at the speedometer.

“Ah fuck!”

“What, what is it?” Anna seemed as thought she was startled from her thoughts.

_“Fuck!”_ Kristoff contemplated gassing it and then thought better of it. He had to do this right or they were both fucked. 

“Kristoff, what…”

“I was speeding.” His answer was blunt through gritted teeth, silently cursing himself to all damnation as he casually changed lanes and pulled shallowly into the shoulder and came to as stop.

“And we’re in a stolen car,” Anna said.

Kristoff looked over at her as he put the car in park. “Yeah.”

“Fuck.”

He nodded, getting ready. “Brace yourself, Anna.”

She did as she was told and Kristoff jammed the gear shift into reverse and floored it. The Lincoln slammed into the grill of the cruiser. The back window of the car blew out causing Anna to yell with surprise. He shifted quickly back into drive and stomped on the accelerator and pulled back onto the interstate. In his rear view the police cruiser remained where it was, and Kristoff hoped he had crippled it enough to stay there.

He glanced over at Anna. She was wide eyed and gripping the seatbelt across her chest with white knuckles. 

“Are you okay?” he shouted.

She looked over at him and nodded. “What are we going to do?”

“Have to get off this highway, _now_.”

He took the next exit into a small town and turned up and down unfamiliar streets, looking for a quiet residential area to acquire another car. They were stopped at a red light when another police cruiser went by in the opposite direction. Kristoff held his breath, looking forward as the car passed, hoping that Anna was doing the same. The car continued on, putting more distance between them.

“Come on, turn green,” he muttered, taking turns keeping an eye on the light and the side mirror.

Then the cruiser slammed on the breaks and tires squealed as the car maneuvered sharply back towards them.

“Shit, hang on!”

Kristoff jacked the wheel and pulled around the car stopped in front of them, accelerating through the intersection causing several passing cars and trucks to slam on their breaks, one narrowly missing crashing into Anna’s side of the car.

Once they were through, he gunned it and took the first left he came up on. The cop car was not far behind. Kristoff kept the vehicle ahead by taking as many confusing twists and turns as possible on unfamiliar streets until the found himself on a small road headed out of the town.

“Fuck,” he spat, pushing the pedal down to the floor as far as it would go. With this long stretch with nowhere to turn off, the cruiser was quickly gaining on them with its powerful 5.7 litre V8. The car was almost on them now and Kristoff knew they were going to attempt a PIT maneuver.

He kept the car straight, letting them get into position and anticipating their timing. Right before the maneuver was attempted, Kristoff slammed on his breaks. The cop car shot past them, scraping loudly up the side of the Lincoln and taking off the side mirror. Kristoff jammed the car back into reverse, turning around quickly and speeding back towards the populated area.

“Anna, I need you to crawl into the back and get my bag from the trunk.” Kristoff saw the Chevy Caprice in the mirror turning around to continue the pursuit. 

“Huh… how?”

“The middle part on the back seat, see it?” Anna looked over her shoulder and nodded. “It folds down. I need you to crawl in and get my bag.”

Anna hesitated, and Kristoff thought for a moment that she might be too scared to do this, when her hands started moving and she unbuckled her belt. 

“Be careful, I might have to take some sharp turns.”

Anna gave him a resolute nod as she crawled over the seat into the back. They were almost back among stores and houses now and the cop car was once again right on their tail. 

“Hang on!” Kristoff shouted, faking a left turn and then jacking the wheel to the right. It confused the cops enough for him to be able to take a small lead. 

He glanced over his shoulder at Anna. She had the seat folded down and had stuffed herself up to her waist in the trunk. 

“Got it!” she shouted and pulled into the car with her. She tossed it up front and was crawling over the seat when Kristoff had to take a quick right, unable to give her a warning. She slipped down and smacked face first against Kristoff’s thigh a fraction of a second before the first bullet whizzed through the broken back window and shattered the windshield. 

“Stay down!” Kristoff turned the wheel, moving his head as far to the left as possible to see the road through the cracked safety glass. They needed to get out of this and they needed to get out of it _now!_

Anna did as she was told, reaching out and clinging to Kristoff, hugging him tightly around the waist with her body half on the seat of the car and half on the floor. It was only a matter of time before there were going to be more cops on their ass and it would be impossible for them to get away. Without a better idea, he turned them back in the direction of that country road.

Kristoff’s skill behind the wheel put them back on it well ahead of the cops. He just hoped it was far enough. He made the car go as fast as it could, willing it to go even faster, when his hail Mary idea loomed over the next hill they crested. The cruiser was almost back on them and it was going to be tight.

“Hang on!” he shouted and let the continue straight off the slight curve into the road. A second gunshot cracked behind them as the car jumped the ditch and ploughed into a cornfield – they were only going to get once chance at this.

“Stuff your purse in the duffle, Anna. Hurry.”

This time there was no hesitation, she unhinged her arms from him and moved quickly as Kristoff steered the car erratically though rows and rows of plants. He finally let it come to a stop and grabbed the bag, slung it over his shoulder, then grabbed Anna’s hand and pulled her with him out of the car and into the wall of corn.

~ ~ ~

“Stop! Kristoff, stop.”

Anna couldn’t breathe. She pulled her hand from his and doubled over, palms on her knees as she gasped for air. Kristoff stood over her, breathing hard. 

They had been running for what felt like hours. At first it seemed like the cops were right behind them, then Anna thought they were getting away when another shout would spur her to think they were right there ahead of them. It had been disorienting running through the corn, until they finally broke through into a farmstead and Anna was sure they were going to be caught out in the open. Kristoff grabbed her hand and ran on, right through the back yard of the house and back into the corn field on the other side.

This time he kept them in a relatively straight line until they reached a gravel road and ran across it into the trees on the other side. They kept going deeper into the forest until Anna could no longer breathe with the excruciating stitch in her side and the burning of her lungs.

“I think… we lost them,” Kristoff panted. 

Anna couldn’t respond. She still felt starved of oxygen and each pull aggravated the sharp pain in her side. Then his hand was on her back, his palm warm and strong against both of her shoulder blades, and it shocked her into pulling in a gulp of air that she choked on.

In an instant he was kneeling in front of her, looking anxiously into her eyes. 

“Are you oaky?”

She nodded, hating that her reaction had caused his touch to leave her. She felt better when he was touching her. As if he could hear her thoughts, both palms came up and rested lightly on her shoulders, bracing her.

“That was a close one, huh?”

Anna heaved a breathless laugh, sinking to her knees on her shaky legs, as tears formed in her eyes. It _was_ close. It was terrifying to think that they would be arrested. Kristoff would tell them she had nothing to do with it, she had no doubt about that, and he would remain in jail while Anna would be tossed to the curb. What the fuck would she do then? 

“Here,” he whispered, pulling her flush against him, wrapping his arms firmly around her. She sighed into him, relieved, comforted, feeling safe and protected. 

“We’ll rest a moment and find another car, okay?”

“And you won’t speed this time?” Anna sniffed.

He gave her a low chuckle. “I promise.”

*****

Turns out they ended up in an old farm truck instead of another car, and they were headed West into Connecticut, trying to put between as much distance as possible between them and the incident, when the sun set.

Anna still wasn’t sure what to say. This whole thing was surreal to her. It had escalated so quickly and she felt like they were in constant danger even though Kristoff assured her that it was a freak coincidence that they had been tagged for speeding in the first place.

Despite her nerves, Anna believed him. 

He turned off the highway suddenly into the parking lot of one of those dingy little roadside places in the middle of nowhere. She had to agree with his choice, feeling so exposed after all.

He parked the truck and turned to her, looking sheepish and opening his mouth. Anna shushed him and unzipped his bag between them, reaching into her purse for her wallet and retrieving a wad of cash that she handed to him without a word. He gave her a slight nod, slipped from the truck with a faint grunt of pain, and went to the lobby to rent them a room.

Anna watched his movements the entire way.

The car chase, his skill in maneuvering the car, the way he kept his cool… it was a glimpse into ‘Kristoff in action’ and it excited Anna beyond anything she had ever experienced before. Well, after they got away and the adrenaline wore off anyway. It was the only part of the entire ordeal that she ran through her mind over and over when they were a safe distance from the barn where they had stolen the truck… every detail of how he handled the situation.

The term _hot and bothered_ was an understatement at this point.

It didn’t take him long. He went around to the passenger door and opened it for Anna and offered her a hand down from the high truck. She did not hesitate to take it, pulling the duffel out with her. He took it from her as soon as her feet were on the ground, then he paused, her hand in his, blinking down at her.

That tornado was back in his eyes. All the feelings he had for her, the desire to protect her, the way he still believed that he had failed her in some way. Anna hated seeing it there and wanted to do something to let him know how much she truly cared about him. She wanted him to understand that she meant what she said, that she was grateful to step into his office that day. She needed him to know that she had those feelings for him too.

Anna leaned closer to him, lifting herself up on her tiptoes and inching closer to his face as she puckered her lips ever so slightly. Then he read her intentions and pulled back, dropping her hand.

“We should… go in… see about getting some food.”

His dismissal stung. She tried to give him exactly what he wanted when he stared at her and he was turning her down. It wasn’t hard to understand his reasons with what she knew about him, but it still hurt like a bitch.

Anna followed him without another word. In the room he did the same as the last time – he hung the ‘do not disturb’ sign on the outside handle, locked the door and shut the drapes tight. Then he went looking through drawers until he came up with a phone book, most likely for some small nearby town, and sat on the bed closest to her while he flipped through it.

“Pizza?”

Anna hadn’t moved from where she stood against the wall by the door. When she didn’t answer him, he looked up and Anna was shocked to see his eyes were begging her not to do that to him again. Somehow that bothered her even more. The last thing she wanted was to hurt him.

“Sure, she sighed as she moved to the other bed, wondering if he would allow her to sleep with him, or if he would insist that they each stay in their own.

Kristoff called a number in the book and ordered a large Delux. Anna had no idea what would be on it but at this point she couldn’t bring herself to care. She slid herself further onto the bed, resting her back against the wall and stretching her legs out in front of her, watching his still body as he stared at the wall and waiting for him to come out of whatever tans he seemed to be in.

It took a moment, but he finally looked over at her. 

“They have a cooler with a few cases of beer in the lobby, if you felt like having a drink.”

That piqued Anna’s interest. For now, they were safe, and a drink sounded like a great way to take the edge off of what she was feeling. “You know, I’ve never had a beer before.”

Kristoff stood, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. “Oh, you’ll hate it. It’s bitter as hell and they only have the cheep stuff so it’ll probably smell skunky.”

Anna had to giggle. “Wow, that sounds like something I just _have_ to try then.”

~ ~ ~

Anna did hate it. Not that it stopped her from drinking it. She wrinkled her nose in disgust with each sip which drove a nail into his heart each time with how endearing it was.

_Why didn’t you let her kiss you?_

The reason was there when she was leaning in. Strange how he couldn’t really remember what it was now. Not with her cheeks rosy from the alcohol, or the way she picked all the black olives off the pizza, or how every time she looked at him her eyes seemed to be thanking him.

God she was so fucking beautiful it was driving him mental.

Why didn’t he let her kiss him? Fuck, why didn’t he just kiss her?

Kristoff glanced at the alarm clock and saw it was close enough to nine that he could check in with Dan. That was the reason, wasn’t it? That Anna’s safety was still in his hands. That if they were going to go down that path, it could not be under these circumstances.

That was reason enough why he wouldn’t let her kiss him. It had to be.

He stood with a faint groan and stretched his back out. Anna remained sitting on the bed, watching him with those incredible eyes of hers before he turned to the phone on the nightstand and dialed.

“Yeah?”

“It’s Kristoff.”

“I figured.”

“What do you have for me?”

Dan sighed. “Nothing. His business is legit, he went to work today, had happy hour drinks with his co-workers, went out for a dinner with a group of people, and went home. Nothing out of the ordinary and nothing looking suspicious. For some reason though, I get the feeling that this guy is one shady fuck.”

“Now you see my predicament.”

“So... the client. His wife, or something?”

“Something,” Kristoff muttered. “I have a plan to take him down and I am probably going to need your help.”

“Of course, Kid. What do you want me to do?”

“I need to figure some things out first, but I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”

“Alright. Stay safe, my friend.”

“You too, Dan. And thank you.”

Kristoff hung up and took a calming breath. If Hans was at the penthouse, now would be as good a time as any to call him. He turned to where Anna was sitting on the edge of the bed, sipping her bottle of beer and looking at him with curiosity.

He hated what was about to happen.

“What’s your home number?”

She blinked at him for a moment, not understanding, then Kristoff watched as realization and horror dawned on her face, kicking him in the gut yet again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this car chase was highly unrealistic but it was the first time I've ever written one so I just tried to have fun with it


	14. Chapter 14

Kristoff dialed the number that Anna gave him with a shaky voice, then put his back to her. There was no way this was going to happen with him staring at her suddenly pale and nervous face. It was going to be hard enough for him to do this with her in the room let alone to be looking at her.

It was answered on the fourth ring with a gruff sounding _Hello_.

“Put your boss on the phone right now.”

He knew he wouldn’t get an answer. He heard only the shuffling of the phone being carried and passed. 

“Well, hello Mr. Bjorgman. I was wondering when you were going to contact me.”

The plastic of the handset creaked in protest as Kristoff’s grip tightened around the phone as his free hand curled into a fist. He wanted to reach through the phone and strangle the smug bastard. He hoped he would get his chance to actually get his hands on him, to give him some pain.

“Tell me what it is that you have on her.”

Hans clicked his tongue. “Straight to the point? Where is the fun in that?”

“Fine. Why now? Why not when she first came to me?”

“Ah, you are smart enough to piece it together. Good for you. To be honest, I did have a few loose ends of my own to tie up beforehand. Had you not evaded my men when you were stupid enough to let her tag along in spying on me, my fiancé would be home with me and you would have nothing to do right now. Terrible turn of events for both of us, really.”

“Sounds like it’s just terrible for you.”

“No, no. You will see how this will affect you in the time to come. It will not be pretty. Or pleasant.”

“I’m shaking,” Kristoff deadpanned. “Tell me what you have on her now or this conversation is going to be over.”

“Alright. Anna is in very real danger of being charged with a few major felonies. Not only that, her charity isn’t as clean as she believes it to be. And then there’s you of course, what with the kidnapping and all…”

“How did you frame her?”

“Frame her? Whatever do you mean?”

He knew Hans wasn’t going to get into it over the phone where Kristoff could possibly be recording the conversation. This asshole would make sure to cover his tracks. 

“Sounds like we need a face to face.”

“What I need, is for my fiancé to be returned to me so we can officially get married. Then I am sure these things simply go away.”

“You know that’s not going to happen, right?”

“Well if she wants her sister to remain alive, it will.”

Kristoff smiled. There was no way that Hans knew-

“It was very clever of you to have the Queen moved. Its just a shame that she was always my key to keeping Anna in line no matter what. If my fiancé doesn’t come to her senses in the next few days… well then, I hope nothing befalls her sister in _Finland.”_

Kristoff’s blood went cold.

“Hello? Are you still there, Mr. Bjorgman?”

There was no way to describe the level of hate that rolled though him. He hated Betty’s husband for what he did, but this was so much more than that. This was raw and excruciating… it was almost more than he could bare. It made him sick to his stomach to know that he had failed once again to help Anna. Hans knew where Elsa was, which meant he had fucked everything up more than he could have ever imagined.

Just when he was starting to think he could actually help her…

He clenched his teeth. “I’m going to kill you,” Kristoff whispered. 

“No, you won’t. But I will grant you your request. Call me tomorrow evening and I will let you know where and when we are going to meet so that you can return my fiancé.” Kristoff couldn’t answer, couldn’t think. All he saw was red. 

“You there, _investigator_?”

“I’ll call,” he said, then slammed down the phone. 

~ ~ ~  
Anna was shaking by the time Kristoff threw down the phone. She watched him, his back heaving up and down, wondering what was going through his mind, wondering what was said to make him so scared and angry. 

Then he snapped.

The movement was so quick. His elbow jacked backwards and then his fist slammed into the sheetrock, cracking it. He stopped for a moment, breathing hard now, then punched the wall a half a dozen more times, opening up a hole. Anna flinched at every thud from his fist, making her cry for the reasons he must be doing it and for how much it was probably hurting him.

When he was finished with his outburst, his arms fell loosely at his sides as he leaned forward, resting his forehead against the wall above where he had broken it.

“What is it?” she whispered, tears spilling down her cheeks, fearing the worst for him to react that way.

“He knows. He knows where the Queen is.” His voice was so quiet, almost like it was coming from another room.

“What? What do you mean?” Anna’s heart started to hammer in her chest. It was impossible! There was no way Hans knew about their family’s secret property.

“He knows she was moved to Finland, Anna. He probably has someone in place to act right now.”

Anna’s tense body sagged with relief and she let out several deep and shaky breathes to calm herself down. She had been so scared that he actually knew, scared that Elsa’s protection detail wasn’t as safe as she thought. Although it was crystal clear now that Hans definitely had someone within the castle feeding him information, he did not, in fact, know where Elsa was.

“He’s bluffing,” Anna sighed, reeling in her frightened tears as she wiped her cheeks and settled her nerves. “He doesn’t know.”

Kristoff pulled his head off the wall and rolled his neck around to look at her. “What do you mean?”

“She’s in France. We say Finland, but it’s a code, a safety procedure set up by our parents before we were born. Elsa would have even gone to Finland before making her way down to France in case he has people following her. It’s a failsafe that was designed and has been tested repeatedly. It always results in successful movement to France undetected. Besides, If Hans really did know where she was, he would want you to know that. Trust me. He doesn’t, so he’s trying to bluff you.”

Kristoff just stared at her with out of focus eyes, still looking over his shoulder as he leaned against the wall. He remained unmoving for a long time, thinking about god knew what.

And Anna was thinking about hurting him.

To see him get so angry, so protective of her, to see how much he truly cared… Anna couldn’t help herself any longer. 

She approached him, slowly, since he was still staring off into space, and gently reached up to put a hand on his shoulder. As soon as her fingers touched his shirt he blinked and turned off the wall to look down at her.

“I thought… that I…”

“You didn’t Kristoff. You made sure she was protected. If you didn’t have her moved, she would be in trouble. But you did, Kristoff. You saved her, just like you are going to save me.”

She didn’t give him time to pull away this time, how could he with his back literally against the wall. Anna wrapped her arms around his shoulders and she lifted herself up to kiss him.

As soon as their lips met, he kissed her back, wrapping his arms around her and holding her tightly against him. Anna parted her lips as his kisses grew hungrier and more desperate, needing more of him, more _from_ him. He took advantage, sliding his tongue into her mouth. He tasted a little bit like pizza and a lot like that godawful beer they had been drinking, she knew she did too, but just having his warm tongue slide against hers, the feel of his strong hands as they slid down to her hips, pulling her closer, the sheer thrill of _feeling_ the passion that she had seen within his eyes…

And then it was all gone. He pushed her back with a firm but gentle grip, looking at the floor in the space he put between them.

“Anna… don’t.”

“No, _you_ don’t! Don’t push me away. Not right now.”

He didn’t listen. He pushed her back farther and stepped around her, heading in the direction of the door. Anna had a panicky moment when she thought he was going to leave, just get into the truck and drive off. But of course he didn’t. She was too used to having Hans storm out of the apartment when she seemed to be getting on his nerves.

Anna felt ashamed for thinking he would actually leave. From what she knew, he would never do such a thing.

Kristoff leaned against the wall beside the dresser that the television was sitting on, sank to the floor, and put his head in his hands. The knuckles on his right hand were bleeding again, thin lines of red trickling down his forearm before meeting and dripping from his elbow.

The sting of tears burned her eyes. Hans didn’t want her to be _as_ she was, her sister didn’t want her to be the _way_ she was, and Kristoff apparently didn’t want her at all. Except that wasn’t right. He did want her. She could _see_ how much he wanted her. What was it then, that prevented him from acting on that? Why was he not allowing them to be together when they both clearly needed each other?

“I’m sorry,” his voice cracked. 

Anna stared at him, fighting not to cry. He didn’t look up however, he just spoke into his hands.

“I can’t, Anna. Not now. Not… not like this,” he ended in a whisper.

Anna finally understood his plea, understood what it meant to him… what he meant to her. She couldn’t stop the tears then to realize that he was saying, to realize just how much he _did_ care. It only took a second to cross the small room, to reach him, and then she fell to her knees and pulled him towards her. 

It was awkward. He ended up shifting himself so that Anna could curl up into his lap. As much as she wanted to hold him, with his size, it felt like he was the one who held her, even if this time his face was tucked into the crook of her neck.

His breath against her skin, the way he clung to her like she imagined she had been clinging to him thus far, Anna’s heart completely melted for him. That was what he could not say earlier; that he was falling in love with her and respected her too much to take advantage of the situation. Anna hoped that by holding him this way, reaching up and stroking his hair, that he would feel that she understood, and that she felt the same way towards him.

~ ~ ~

Anna had done what she could to clean up his stupid bloody knuckles before she coaxed him into the bed furthest away from the window to lay down with her. Despite how much he hated himself, it hadn’t taken much.

She made him strip his lower half down to his boxers and get into bed, then she checked the lock and turned all the lights off before joining him. His shame made him face the window with the back to the rest of the bed, hoping that she would just settle and fall asleep.

Stupid how he kept ignoring what he knew she would want.

Anna curled herself around him as soon as she was under the covers, pushing her chest against his back and her arm around his waist. It was nice. No one had ever held him like this before. He was usually the one doing the holding.

They were both so wrecked from adrenaline he had to wonder why they were even attempting sleep in the first place. And then Anna started talking. 

“I don’t want to know what else he told you. I don’t want that to be what is hanging between us right now. But I will get you tell me about something else. Something about the happy times in your life?”

Kristoff smiled to himself, emotion creeping up into his throat. He was so in love with her it was stupid.

“There was an ice cream shop, down the road from our house,” he started. 

Anna sighed, her breath warm and welcomed on the nape of his neck as her tight grip around his waist relaxed. 

“Whenever my Dad would put a story he was working on to bed, he would come home and spend a few days with us kids. He gave my Ma a break by taking us off her hands. Usually to the park or running off steam throwing a football around. We all treasured that. And after, he would take us for ice cream. The best soft-serve in the entire city, in a waffle cone with sprinkles and a maraschino cherry on top…”

Kristoff stopped, suddenly choked up. He swallowed and took a deep calming breath to steel himself.

“It was really special,” he finished.

“That sounds wonderful.”

Her tone was thankful, spurring him to continue. If this was what she needed right now, he was absolutely going to give it to her. He rolled around under her arm to face her and she gave him a grateful smile. His eyes roamed over her beauty. She was so close – close enough that all he would need to do would be to shift his face forward to kiss her. He wanted to, more than anything.

But he wouldn’t. 

“My mom made these donuts sometimes. She called them spud-nuts, because they were made with potatoes-”

“What?” Anna giggled.

Kristoff smiled. “Yeah, with potatoes. And you mix the yeast with the starchy water you boil the potatoes in.”

“Are they sweet?”

He chuckled. “Yes, there’s sugar in the recipe. And the glaze is a typical donut glaze, but they just taste different from regular cake donuts. They are delicious, actually. And my mom would always make them on Sundays and serve them warm as an afternoon treat before dinner. I am pretty sure my parents only ever got to split one before the rest of us kids inhaled them.”

“That is wonderful, Kristoff. And they sound delicious. What else did your Mom like to make?”

He knew what she was doing. It was still uncomfortable to share himself, but he embraced it, feeling secure with the ways she was looking at him. He told her nearly every single thing he could think about that made him happy as a child after Bulda and Cliff had adopted him. 

Anna’s responses and questions tapered off and it wasn’t long after that her eye lids grew heavy. He still talked, wanting her to rest and thinking that the sound of his voice was helping with that. When it appeared that she was finally out, he stopped.

There was nothing left for him to do but stare at her. He wanted to get up and pace and think, but doing so would likely wake her. The only thing he wanted right now was to observe her, soft and beautiful and at peace.

After a long while, his eyes eventually closed in favour of sleep. His last thought was of her current nightmare and how he hoped that they would both get through this night with only good dreams. 

~ ~ ~

Hans paced his master bedroom.

_That damn bitch._

He was still pissed that the stupid fucking PI had gotten the best of his men and taken her back. It appeared that he had underestimated the man just a touch. And now he had bluffed about knowing where the fucking Queen was. He was confident she was in Finland; his team across the pond had tracked her there and it was only a matter of time before they locked onto her location. That asshole PI believed him and really that was all that mattered.

It was, however, the unease of knowing that the fucking blond had his woman that made him so restless. He did not like it when other people touched his things. When he got Anna back, the PI would pay. And so would she. 


	15. Chapter 15

Kristoff woke slowly, which was unusual for him. 

He was never one to hit the snooze button on his alarm. He barely even needed an alarm with his internal clock being so in tuned to get up early when he had shit to do, which was always. When he was awake, he got out of bed, and he wasted no time in the whole _just five more minutes_ bullshit.

The reason for his newfound reluctance to leave bed was the warmth sprawled against him.

Anna had one leg hooked over his and the top of her head tucked under his chin while the arm she wasn’t laying on rested on his chest next to her cheek. Part of him wished he was shirtless to have her skin directly on his. He would happily settle for this though.

Without a reason to get up and Anna breathing steadily against him, he fell back asleep. 

The next time he woke it was because Anna shifted, bringing her leg up farther and the hand on his chest navigating to his side, giving a tight squeeze before relaxing again. She fell back asleep and he did the same.

Then he woke once more and could no longer enjoy Anna and her wonderful embrace. He had to piss, and his back was now killing him too much to ignore.

He slipped out from under her as gently and quietly as he could. He had to bite his fist to keep from crying out in pain as he moved to stand. That fucking bastard – if Kristoff ever had the pleasure of getting his hands on the man, he would break every bone in his body.

Or send him to the morgue.

Not that he had ever killed anyone. The desire had been there, more times than he liked to admit, but ability to do so was questionable. Even now, if he had the upper hand and Hans in his grasp, after giving him a thorough beating at the very least, he didn’t think he would actually be able to end the other mans life. Not that he wouldn’t fight until the death. If it was a matter of him or that asshole there was no question, Kristoff would do what he had to do. But given the choice, he would actually love to see Hans rot in jail. To know what it would do to that man, for someone so controlling to experience that level of hell.

Unless the only way to save Anna was to end his life. 

Then he would, without a doubt. No qualms. No regrets. He knew that, even if he hadn’t done it yet, he cared that much about her. There would be no hesitation.

He would kill for her.

Deep breathing helped him get to the bathroom without making too much sound. All the movements they had to endure to evade the police had aggravated his injury substantially. After relieving himself he started the shower, hoping the steam would loosen his muscles enough. He stepped in, sighing under the hot water, when he heard the door open without a knock.

He supposed there was very little between them now that they did not share. She spoke from right outside the shower curtain. 

“I have to pee.”

“Give me a second, I’ll get out.” 

“No, it’s okay. As long as…if… you know… if you don’t mind?”

“I don’t mind,” he said softy. 

When he heard toilet lid touch the bowl – he was going to have to remember to put it back down from now on – he started humming loudly. He felt it she would want it. Something to distance the intimacy they felt for each other. It sucked that they had to share a bathroom given their situation and he did not want her to feel embarrassed or anything.

The toilet flushed and he fell silent when he heard water running in the sink. Then nothing. He knew she was standing there, probably had that plump and incredibly soft bottom lip pinched in her teeth, too.

Fuck, he wanted to kiss her again.

“What’s on your mind?”

“Well, I guess I am starting to wonder what else Hans told you? I mean, its not like your sagging with relief that I’m in the clear. I meant what I said, I really didn’t want to know last night. But now… I suppose I need to know, don’t I?”

He sighed. It wasn’t like he could just _not_ tell her. “I think he’s been using your charity for part of his crimes.”

“W-what? How?”

“I don’t know, but if I had to hazard a guess, I would say he’s most likely using it to launder money for the mob. That would certainly explain his connection to organized crime.”

“He can’t do that!”

“Does he do work for the charity?” 

“Um, yeah, he offered to do all the bookkeeping…”

Kristoff absolutely hated hearing that tone in her voice, hated that she was still beating herself up for how Hans had manipulated her. 

“Anna,”

“I know, I know,” she sighed. “I just can’t help but feeling so fucking stupid for all of this.”

He winced. “Please don’t say things like that.”

“Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize to me about this stuff, Anna. Not ever.”

She was silent for a moment and then gave him a quiet ‘ _Okay’_ before clearing her throat and speaking louder. “How would he have done it then?”

“It would be easy for him,” _since he was keeping the books._ He’s not going to say that out loud though. Anna would figure it out. “The charity would be taking money from the mob in form of _donations_ and he would pay out very generous employee wages to the guys he has _hired_. Basically, the cash gets right back to the mob, clean as a whistle.”

He heard the toilet lid close and imagined Anna was now sitting on it. Interesting how she had done that in his presence a few times now. Twice while he was in the shower and then when he died her hair back.

Would that be what it was like living with her? She would come waltzing into the bathroom when he was in it, probably signing a song or humming a melody. Perhaps he would be in the shower and she would tease him by pulling back the shower curtain. He could see her playful smile so clearly before her mischievousness took over and her teeth caught her bottom lip as she started to undress to join him-

“Let me guess, that’s a pretty serious crime.”

Kristoff shook the image out of his head. It was best not to fantasize about what his life with her would be like. That would only lead him down a road of pain.

“It’s a Class D Felony,” he said, turning under the water and welcoming the heat beating down onto his chest.

“Jesus.”

“And unfortunately, that’s not all he’s apparently done. He hinted at something else but we’ll have no way of knowing what he’s trying to frame you with until I meet him face to face.”

“When is that supposed to happen?”

“I call tomorrow and we find out. Today we’ll get all the things we are going to need for that.”

“Will we have enough money?”

Kristoff sighed. The equipment they were going to pick up was not cheap. “I sure hope so.”

*****

Anna was just finishing packing up the remainder of their loose things into the bags while Kristoff dialed. The phone was answered on the first ring.

“Kristoff?”

“Hi Pop. How are you?”

“I’m well, son. How about you?”

“Not bad, considering.” He glanced over at Anna who was now watching him intently from where she sat on the opposite bed. She was sitting cross legged, her slender fingers curled around her ankles, smiling at him in the most devastatingly sweet way. 

_Fucking hell why did you just keep kissing her..._

“I’ve got everything you asked for.”

That surprised him. _“Everything?”_

“Yup. What you thought was going on is exactly what is going on.”

“Well… _shit.”_

“What else do you need?”

“Nothing right now, but I’ll let you know. And thanks, Dad. I really appreciate your help.”

“I love you, son.”

“I love you, too.”

“Here, your Mother wants to talk to you.”

Kristoff smiled to hear his Ma’s voice. He assured her that he was fine despite her insistence that she knew he wasn’t. He glanced at Anna, that breathtaking smile still on her lips. Her expression held so much understanding, so much compassion, making his heart ache. His patience to put this behind them and rid themselves of Hans once and for all, was wearing very thin.

He said goodbye to his Ma three times before actually hanging up. Anna stood as he did.

“So, now we get supplies, right? Then what?”

“We’ll find a safe place as close to Manhattan as possible. I will touch base with Dan then I will phone the fucking prick tonight and see where this meet is supposed to take place. Then we carry out the plan.”

Anna gave him a resolute nod, but he could see the fear behind her eyes and he suddenly longed for a day when he wouldn’t see it there.

~ ~ ~

The room was very dim, lit only by a floor lamp positioned in the far corner. The heavy drapes were closed to the outside world, giving the small room a comforting quality. Or perhaps it was the other person in the room who gave her that sense of calm.

Anna sat at the small table drying her hair with a towel as Kristoff went through all the electronics and checked it against his list. She had no idea what half of them even did, but Kristoff was right, it had eaten up almost all of the cash that they had left.

They found themselves at the Ramada in Yonkers. It was a nicer hotel than they had stayed in thus far. After Kristoff had called Dan to check in and arrange a meet for the next morning, they had walked down the streets in search of a cheap meal and ended up at a McDonalds. Anna had never eaten there before but Kristoff assured her their Quarter Pounders were the best. He wasn’t wrong, considering Anna had nothing else to base it on, and she did love cheese. They shared a large order of fries as they talked about pretty much anything other than what they were up against. It was for the better that their meal was short, because even though they tried to keep things light, the heaviness grew with pretending everything was okay when they were both all to aware that it wasn’t.

When they were back in the hotel, Kristoff warned her that he was going to call Hans. Anna suddenly felt gross all over again and excused herself in favour of a shower over watching Kristoff’s tense body as he talked to that animal. It was better this way, not having to have that feeling roll through her stomach again as it did every time she caught a glimpse of Kristoff’s bruising or seeing him wince when he moved. 

Anna watched his movements closely as he began to pack up their purchases. He had shaved again after his morning shower. God, she wanted to kiss that soft skin, press her lips to every inch of his beautiful face. Her eyes were powerless to look away as he tossed his notebook back into his duffle bag and put it with the new electronics.

With his task apparently finished, he sat on the bed facing her. His eyes wandered over her face and he answered her expectant expression.

“Tomorrow. Midnight.”

Anna could only nod. Her throat suddenly felt very dry. The closer they got to facing Hans, the more dread she felt in the pit of her belly. 

She tossed the damp towel onto the table as she stood up. “Is this… going to be dangerous.”

His answer was immediate as he stood and looked down into her eyes. “Not for you, Anna. I will make sure you are safe.”

“I’m not worried about me,” she whispered, feeling frantic at the thought of Kristoff having to face Hans again. That bastard was so sneaky, what if there was something that Kristoff didn’t anticipate, or something he didn’t think about…

“Anna, I will be fine. I’ve been in worse situations, believe me.”

She shook her head, willing away the sting of tears. “I can’t just leave you to do this alone. I should be there with you, I should-”

His hands came up, cupping her cheeks. “I would _never_ let you do that. If anything ever happened to you… I…” he swallowed and let out a shaky breath, “I would be unable to forgive myself.”

The serious tone of his voice chilled Anna to the bone. He meant it. He meant every word. He was putting his life on the line for her and _fuck_ was she ever in love with him. Everything about him. He made her feel protected and safe, he respected her all while making her feel like she was the most beautiful woman on the planet, and he thrilled her to her very core, sparking things inside of her that she had no idea even existed. 

Anna could not let him get away with his chivalry any longer. Whatever the reason he wasn’t letting things happen between them, was no longer going to get in her way. She wasn’t going to let it get in his way anymore either.

“Kristoff, I only have one request. One thing that I need tonight before all this happens tomorrow.”

His eyes went wide and he dropped his hands from her face as he read the intent on her features. 

“Anna, no. Don’t do this...”

She was going to tell him anyway. If something were to happen to either of them, she would not want to live without knowing what could have been. 

“I want to be with you,” she inched closer to him.

“I can’t… please.”

“I _need_ to be with you, Kristoff.” She knew how to make him comply, knew how break through that part of him that had a death like grip on what he felt was the _right thing to do_. It wasn’t about that though, it was about _them_ , in this moment, finally allowing each other to express their emotions and their feelings towards one another. Anna was fully prepared to use her weapon to make him understand that. 

She steeled her shoulders and whispered, “Kristoff,” He was perfectly still, his eyes wide and intense. He was so close, so close to giving in, and Anna knew how to make him do so. 

“Please-”

He grabbed her and kissed her before she was barely finished the word. Anna let out a strangled sound, almost screaming with relief to finally have his trust with this happening between them. One of his big hands slid her under t-shirt, hot and firm across her back while his tongue slid into her mouth. The other gripped her ass, squeezing and making her moan.

If she thought that kiss the day before held passion, she had no idea what to call _this._ That didn’t even hold a candle to feeling the full force of that tornado in his eyes. She had never been kissed like this before, kissed with so much devotion and longing. It made her head spin. 

Feeling a mounting sense of desperation, Anna broke the kiss and reached down to take off her shirt. He followed her lead while Anna unhooked her bra and let it fall between them. His lips were on hers before it even hit the floor and he shifted to allow his hand to grab one of her breasts. Anna took her own pleasure in touching his flesh, palms running over the muscular plane of his back, his neck, his waist, god there was so much of him to touch with how broad he was.

Then he was tugging at her jeans, undoing the button and the zipper. No sooner were they loose at her hips and his palms were sliding down her thigs, taking the pants with them.

“Now you,” she moaned into his lips. He didn’t stop kissing her as his hands moved to his own jeans and removed them. The only clothing they wore now were the thin layers over the parts of them that were frantic to come together. 

Reading her mind, he broke the kiss and picked her up to take her over to the bed. He laid her on it and moved to lay beside her, leaning over and kissing her again as his hand came up to her other breast, massaging and caressing her with a gentle firmness.

“Fuck, Anna. You are so gorgeous,” he whispered as his lips left hers and moved down her neck.

She wanted his mouth back on hers but _shit_ did it ever feel good to be kissed like this, kissed on her body anywhere but her lips. His kisses trailed lower, across her collarbone, moving down to the swell of her breasts, between them and then up to one of her nipples…

Anna pulled in a breath as Kristoff took her nipple into his mouth and sucked it firmly. He repeated the action with her other breast while Anna moaned, lost in time with this new sensation, when it suddenly ceased and her eyes opened.

He was sitting up on his legs, his erection straining against his boxers as he stared down at her.

“I want to see all of you,” he muttered.

His gaze was so intense, his eyes wide and dark and… waiting.

She blinked up at him, could not believe that he was actually _asking_. Anna gave him her answer by sliding off her panties and kicking them across the room.

He let out a long sigh, like he had been holding his breath, his gaze travelling the entire length of her body before settling on her eyes.

“You are without a doubt the most beautiful thing in the world.”

He gave her no time to respond as he leaned back over and put his lips to hers. Anna lost herself in his kisses, lost herself in time again as he made her feel things she had never felt before. His lips blazed across her skin, moving down the length of her body, lower and lower, his thick fingers curling around the inside of her thighs, spreading her legs apart and-

“Kristoff!” she squeaked. “What are you doing?”

“I want to taste you,” he murmured, pressing kisses to the inside of her hip, so very close to her most intimate area.

“What? No, that’s… I mean… guys don’t _like_ that. Do they?”

His eyes came up to hers and he let out breathy exhale that tickled her sensitive skin before he pushed up onto his hands and moved to hover his face right over hers.

“Any _guy_ who doesn’t like that, cannot call himself a man, and does not deserve the love of a woman.”

“But, I’ve never… I mean, I... don’t shave, and... I just thought…”

“I know, Anna. It’s okay.” His voice was so soft and caring, sending a fluttery feeling through her entire body. “If you really don’t want me to, I wont. The last thing I want right now is for you to feel uncomfortable. But Anna, I _want_ to taste you. _Fuck_ do I ever want to taste you. I promised myself if I ever got the opportunity to be with you, I would show you what it was like to be loved by a real man.”

Anna’s heart thundered in her chest at his words. He _knew._ She didn’t have to say anything for Kristoff to just _know_ that no one had ever kissed her there, had anyone’s mouth _there._ Hell, he probably figured out everything else too. He probably knew that Hans had always made her turn onto her hands and knees while he fucked her like a dog, or that if it wasn’t that, it was always the unsatisfactory missionary position. Not that anything was satisfactory for her. Anna was always left to pleasure herself. She had never achieved an orgasm with Hans, not once, not even close, and he had her believing that it was _her_ issue, that she was one of those women who was just too hard to get off, even though her own touch accomplished that task very effectively. She had practically begged him to try different positions, but he had always brushed her off and told her that only _whores_ rode men like that or had sex anywhere other than a bed. Anna had wanted so much more, had longed to feel the pleasure and passion she read about in books.

And Kristoff _knew_ all this.

Her centre throbbed painfully. She wanted him more than she had ever wanted anything in her life. No one had ever been able to light a fire so hot within her, to have her _ache_ to feel him inside of her. There was no doubt in her mind that Kristoff was going to show her _exactly_ what she had been missing out on when it came to the ways of passion…

_The ways of lovemaking._

The exhale of his name was cut off by his lips smashing against hers. Anna trusted him completely, didn’t allow her insecurities to get in the way of his affection as his lips left hers and he kissed his way back down her body to put his face between her legs. 

Anna sucked in a breath as his tongue dragged up her centre. She had no idea what to expect but she didn’t think it would feel so… intimate? So incredibly sensual to have his tongue, as he had put it, _taste_ her. Her eyes closed to savour the unbelievable pleasure and her fingers found their way to his hair, burying in the feather soft strands and pulling them gently into her fists.

He sucked on her clit and Anna gasped, her hips bucking involuntarily. She felt him chuckle against her skin, then he hooked his thumbs over her hips and curled his long, thick fingers around her bottom to hold her. Fuck, did he know how amazing it felt to her? Well probably, since she was now trying to grind herself against his mouth for more. Then he pulled back and changed the game.

The tip of his tongue danced across her swollen clit, teasing her, making her feel pleasure in a way she had never experienced before. The bundle of nerves felt raw and exposed as his wet tongue danced over it. Anna shuddered, gasping as her legs started to shake out of her control. Then he showed her mercy and pressed his lips around her clit, kissing gently and repeatedly until…

“Fuck… _Kristoff!”_

She was drowned with so much pleasure that she couldn’t even make a sound, couldn’t even breathe as her centre pulsed in a way that was foreign to her. All the muscles in her body tightened; her abs went taunt as her body curled up to ride out the ecstasy, her thighs coming together and squeezing his head, fistfuls of his hair in her white-knuckled fists, her face felt twisted in what she was sure could be described in no other way than a grimace. 

Every limb sagged onto the bed when it was over. She had never felt something so powerful before. Hell, no one but herself had ever given her an orgasm before. It was special… intimate… and the fact that Kristoff was the one who gave it to her, meant _everything._

He worked his way back up her body with gentle kisses then hovered over her. Anna slowly opened her eyes to see his face painted by a smirk. 

She smiled and laughed breathlessly. “Wow.”

His face changed, his smile becoming soft. “You deserve the proper kind of love, Anna.”

Her eyes widened and he seemed to realize what he said by how his expression shifted to something Anna couldn’t stand to see on him right now. Instead she kissed him, and forced him – with gentle pressure that he immediately yielded to – onto his back so that she could have her turn. 

Anna didn’t ask like he did, she reached forward and pulled off his boxers, aided when he lifted his hips. She took in the sight of him with a smile growing on her face. Reaching out, she ran her fingertips lightly down his cock, from the tip to his balls. He groaned and his eyes fluttered closed. 

This too was new to her. She had no idea what an un-circumcised penis looked like. Hell, she had no idea that a penis could even be this big in real life. It would be intimidating maybe if it was attached to any other man. But this was Kristoff, and Kristoff was gentle. He would be as gentle with her in this as he was in showing her how to use those chopsticks with those large hands of his.

Anna wrapped her hand around the middle of his hard length and moved it slowly up and down. His eyes opened then and he looked into hers. His stare was powerful as she touched him, growing more and more intense as she slowly leaned over and parted her lips…

He hissed when Anna kissed the tip of his cock, and gave her a long, strangled moan as she slid her mouth down his length, pursing her lips tight around him and working more and more of him into-

“Anna, stop.”

She pulled her mouth off of him and looked up, worried that she was doing it wrong. Then she saw it in his gentle smile and his loving eyes. 

Her own widened. Was that what it was like for him? To be able to look at someone and read them so clearly, to know beyond a shadow of a doubt what they were thinking without having to be told.

It made her feel dizzy to understand he needed her as much as she needed him right now.

“I want you, Kristoff,” she breathed.

“Show me, Anna. Show me how you want me.”

She pinched her lip in her teeth. So he really did know everything then. 

Anna moved to straddle him, his dark eyes tracking every movement with intent. Grabbing the base of his cock she aligned herself with him and began to lower her body down. She went slow, relishing in the way his size was stretching her. 

It felt so fucking good, she gasped softly. As soon as she did so, his hands were on his hips, bracing her.

“Does it hurt?”

Anna let out a breathy laugh. _This man I swear_. Apparently, he even knew how he stacked up against Hans, along with everything else. She was going to have to ask him sometime, how he knew what he did.

“No,” she breathed. His grip relaxed as soon as she pushed herself down further. “It just feels like nothing else I have ever had before.” 

He smirked at that as she settled herself flush with him fully buried inside of her. She knew it was going to feel good, but she didn’t think it was going to feel _this_ good. His length, the thickness of him, it fit with her in a way that made her never want to not have him inside of her. 

Anna rolled her hips around him, rocked back and forth, even leaned over and began to grind up and down in search of what she was looking for with his soft moans and his firm but yielding grip never leaving her waist. It felt surreal to be in charge of their lovemaking. Almost as good as each new action brought pleasure to her centre. All these first experiences she was having with Kristoff meant the world to her. His trust and respect meant the world to her. 

Moving to find a new position, she straightened her back and experimented by bouncing herself up and down on his cock. Reaching back and placing her palms on his muscular thighs for support, she changed the angle of her hips and then-

_There it is…_

His dark eyes raked over her body as she intensified the movements, then his hands dropped to her hips and he quickly found her rhythm, moving in time with her and ramping up her pleasure.

Anna could no longer keep her eyes open. Concentrating on the feeling, the way his cock stroked that part inside of her that had never been stimulated before. It felt so much better than she imagined from only reading about it. It made her breathless, gasping, with her already sensitive clit adding to the overall enjoyment. 

Anna gave into the experience and rode him to the most gratifying orgasm she had ever experienced, including the previous one. 

She collapsed on his chest, panting, as the last waves of pleasure tapered off. It was weird, to use a man to seek her own release, and she suddenly felt bad for completely ignoring Kristoff. She had no idea what it was like for him, had forgotten about checking to make sure he was enjoying it too with only concentrating on herself, and worry crept into her mind that-

“Fuck.” He let out a breath of air on top of her head. “That was… _Jesus Christ_ Anna, that was incredible.”

She was confused, having not felt him. Although her own orgasm was so strong, perhaps she just missed it?

“Did you..”

“No,” he said quickly. “Not yet. I just…” he sighed and fell silent, his palms sliding from her side to her back to hug her as she lay against him.

Anna smiled and hugged him back. “Are you close?”

“Very,” he said through a breathy laugh.

“How do you want me? I can turn over and-”

“No.” His tone was forceful and Anna understood, even though he made his voice softer immediately. “I want to kiss you, Anna.”

She rolled off of him in answer and settled on her back as he shifted to lean over her. It looked like he was going to say something before he abandoned the idea and kissed her, soft and slow before he moved over her. Anna parted her legs, welcoming him by reaching down between them to guide him.

His shaky exhale fell over her face as he slid back into her before he leaned down and kissed her again. He never stopped, even when he reached his arms down, taking turns in gripping her thighs and guiding them to his waist, he continued to kiss her. Anna understood and hooked her ankles around him, squeezing and changing the angle in which he entered her.

A moment later his pace faltered and became erratic. Anna kissed him harder, wanting him to know that she was ready, and he gave in. She felt every strong pulse of his thick cock inside of her and she gasped, not due to another orgasm but with the sensation of feeling his. Another new thing for her. She felt silly now for asking him earlier if he had. If she knew it would feel that noticeable to her, she never would have asked.

When he finished his body relaxed against hers with a soft sigh. Anna let her legs fall back down to the bed and hugged him tighter against her. His face shifted and he put his lips to her neck, kissing her gently. 

She hummed with satisfaction. “I don’t have to tell you how much this meant to me, do I?”

“No,” he whispered, kissing down onto her shoulder. “I know, Anna. I hope you know how much it meant to me as well.”

“I do,” she smiled at the ceiling. She really did too.

His lips moved back to hers and he continued to kiss her slowly while he went soft inside of her. After moments of bliss enjoying his wonderful kisses, he finally moved and laid on his back beside her with a deep and satisfied sounding sigh. 


	16. Chapter 16

Three years ago, Kristoff found himself in the Cayman Islands for a case. 

He was reluctant at first, since him and Betty were supposed to have headed to the Bahamas after he wrapped up her case, and being near that island seemed a little too ominous. It would have been his first vacation. 

This wasn’t anything like that, it was a job plain and simple, so he had brushed off his reservations and decided to actually look forward to getting on a plane and seeing something other than the grimy streets of Manhattan.

It was a simple case; spy on a man whose wife accused him of hiding assets before their upcoming divorce proceedings. It took him only a single afternoon of looking into the situation and a surprisingly little amount of intimidation for the man to admit everything before being sent on his way, grumbling and cursing about not signing a prenup.

Kristoff called his client and told her the good news, then with nothing else to do before his flight back the next morning, decided to take the rest of the day off and relax for once. He stopped by a busy shop that sold swimsuits, purchased one for himself, and spent the remainder of the afternoon swimming in the ocean and laying on the beach. 

As it turned out, he rather enjoyed being out in the sun. His job was mostly night work, skulking around in the darkness, spying, and sleeping sporadically during the day, always waking up feeling tired no matter how long he rested.

That night, after a delicious seafood meal on the terrace of the hotel he was staying in, he had the best sleep of his life. When he woke, he felt reinvigorated, a feeling that had been long forgotten to him. In fact, he thought he had lost it completely after what had happened in his life. That was the first time he ever felt the itch to do something other than the only thing he knew.

He returned to New York with a rather positive outlook and vigor to make his life better, to move on from the nastiness he dealt with day in and day out. Then he quickly found his old habits and the job sucked him back into the darkness.

He never did forget that feeling though, even if he did push it to the very back recesses of his mind. He was reminded of it now, with Anna snuggled up against his side, naked skin pressed to his, her palm caressing his chest in the most tender way anyone had ever touched him.

Nothing else in his world mattered for the moment. Right now, he was at peace.

Love was a funny thing, actually. It had this way of making the experiences you share with that person different. After everything he had experienced with Anna, he realized that as much as he wanted to believe it back then, he was never truly in love with Betty. 

How could he know? Love with a woman had never happened to him before then, and that feeling of a connection with her left him with an infatuation and nothing else. Having never felt real love, he was unable to see the difference.

Until now.

This… _her_ … she was real. _She_ was love.

And making love to her had far outweighed all his bad days combined. If he had to walk through hell just to have her again, he would. 

The way she took control for herself was the best part of it. Watching her figure out what she wanted and then seeing – and feeling – her climax… he would never get that image and that experience of her out of his mind. She was absolutely _breathtaking_. 

No matter what happened, he would always have that. If when this was over he was destined to spend the rest of his days alone, he would have that image of her, that moment, that feeling, and it would keep him going even on the most hopeless of days.

Anna’s palm journeyed down his chest and closer to where he was starting to swell with arousal. That was how much he had loved seeing her come undone in the way that she wanted to experience it. The thought alone was enough to make him hard again.

“Wow,” Anna breathed against his side as her touch trailed lightly along his length. “Can you… again? I mean… I’ve heard that some guys can do it more than once in a night?”

He let out a low chuckle. “There you go using the word _guy_ again. And to answer your question, yes, I am one of those _men_ that can go again.”

He looked over to see her lip pinched in her teeth and could not help but grin at her. This was all he had ever wanted in life. To be comfortable enough with someone, to smile and joke around… to have a real connection. 

An inexplicable bond. 

Anna moved to kiss him and he abandoned his thoughts. It was amazing actually, how quickly things became intensely passionate between them with just one kiss. Kristoff pulled her on top of him and she straddled his waist, her lips intensifying against his own.

She pulled back and gasped. “I need you, Kristoff.”

“I need you too,” he murmured.

“Show me,” she smiled. “You show me now how you need me.”

Kristoff pulled her back down to as kiss full of understanding and anticipation. She wanted him to be in control this time. He broke the kiss and sat up, moving so that his back was against the headboard. Anna remained on her stomach, pressed between his legs. Before she got the wrong idea, he gently grabbed her arms to move her.

She went willingly, turning as he indicated and sitting up like he was with her back against his chest. From this angle his hands could roam all over the front of her body. He aimed to give her pleasure before he took his own.

He massaged the flesh of her breasts as he kissed from her earlobe down her neck and onto her shoulder, then moved his caress, trialing his right palm down the flat plain of her stomach and curing between her legs.

He pressed his middle two fingers to her clit and moved circles over it. Her passionate moans spurred him to further his touch and he moved his hand and slid one finger, and then two into her heat, while she gasped and writhed. His idea was that he would give her release before taking her, but she had other ideas.

“I want you inside of me _now_ ,” she groaned.

He was absolutely not going to deny that request. Gripping her hips, he shifted her up while she reached between her legs to help guide him into her. They moaned together as she slid down his cock. He let her take control over the pace and his hand went back to where he would be able to give her the maximum amount of pleasure. She reached her arms back and took a firm grip on the back of his neck as they moved together.

His other palm remained pressed just below her belly button as he brought her to climax. He savoured the feeling of her contractions. With how tight she felt around him, it was all too easy to enjoy every single one of them.

“Oh god that was,” she laughed, slumping against him. “Just… wow.”

“You are incredible, Anna,” Kristoff muttered, kissing back up her shoulder to her neck. 

She didn’t let him kiss her very long before she lifted off of him and turned around. He drank her in with his eyes, feeling his heart flutter all over again at how beautiful she truly was.

“How do you want me?”

He blinked at her. The statement was simple and yet complicated. He wanted her in every conceivable way, could not find an end to the ways he imagined they could come together. How was he supposed to show her how he wanted her when he couldn’t figure it out himself?

So much for taking control.

“Do you want to fuck me, Kristoff?”

His eyes went wide. _That_ surprised him. Not to mention how incredibly hot it was.

“Yes,” he said with a gruff voice. 

“Take me then,” she breathed and leaned in to kiss him.

He was helpless with her lips on his until she bit his lower lip, spurring him into action. He grabbed her, flipped her over onto her back and slid all the way back into her with one thrust. She cried out and he had a moment of panic, like he was hurting her, then her teeth clenched and she hissed out a _‘yes’._

Still, he had to check.

“Are you sure?”

“Fuck me, Kristoff.”

He did as he was asked, stopping his frenzied pace only long enough to tuck her calves against his shoulders, folding her so he could better reach that special spot inside of her. After that his mind nearly went blank. He was gripping her, holding on for dear life, feeling ever so slightly on the edge of losing control as he let his instinct take over.

Anna’s screaming orgasm brought him back long enough to slow down for her to ride it out. After that, it took him only another minute of pounding into her before he followed with his own. 

Before he was even finished, he moved his arms so that Anna could but her legs down and he could collapse practically all the way onto her. He worried he might be crushing her, but he was well and truly spent. Anna eased his mind by wrapping her arms around him and hugging him tight, her hand repeatedly running through the hair on the back of his head and onto the nape of his neck. 

It was too easy to forget things when he was with her. His life… what they were about to face. Too easy to he happy with her.

Which still scared him, although not nearly as much as it did in the beginning.

He kissed her passionately for a while before sliding from her and laying at her side, clinging to her with his eyes closed for a moment of appreciation for life to allow him to experience something so amazing that he felt like he could cry.

Anna excused herself after a long blissful moment and came back from the bathroom with a smile on her face. Kristoff watched her the whole way, eyes taking every single naked inch of her in. She was absolutely perfect. 

She crawled into bed and snuggled against his side as he laid on his back. After a moment she yawned, and when he looked over at her, her eyes were closed.

“Goodnight, Anna,” he whispered.

“Goodnight, Kristoff,” she sighed, snuggling closer.

She was asleep in moments, clearly not the only one who was spent. Kristoff thought it might take him a lot longer, but soon he was being dragged down by exhaustion.

He fell asleep and dreamt of Anna, and a whispered _‘I love you’._

~ ~ ~

It all went to shit.

Anna had bought into Kristoff’s confidence in his meeting with Hans, sure that his plan was going to work to get her in the clear so they could both rid themselves of that asshole once and for all. One minute he was talking, and the next Anna was screaming, kneeling beside Kristoff in a growing pool of his blood from two gunshot sounds to the chest.

A cry ripped her from the nightmare, leaving her gasping as the realization that it wasn’t real slowly crept into her consciousness.

“Anna, it’s okay. I’m here.”

She shifted towards his soft and concerned voice in the nearly pitch-black room. Of all the hotels, this one actually had proper room darkening drapes. She found him easy enough, reaching up to feel his chest as he leaned over with one hand on the other side of her, propping himself up. Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she brought him against her in a hug.

“I…” Anna huffed out a breath, still reeling from the images of the dream.

“Nightmare?” he prodded gently

“Yeah,” she breathed. 

Kristoff hugged her tighter, then moved, gently pulling her with him as he laid on his back. Anna took advantage immediately and clung to him as his arms circled around to hug her. The images from the dream faded quickly in his protective and comforting embrace.

Nightmares weren’t new to her. She had them often and always woke with that crushing sense of loneliness to know there was no one to comfort her. Hans didn’t like to be woken, so she would walk to the bathroom on shaky legs and compose herself with some deep breathing and a cold washcloth. At the time she thought it was at least better than when she had lost her parents. She was truly alone then, and would have no other option than to cry herself to sleep, wishing upon whatever she could that someday she would not feel so lonely.

And now her soul felt the relief of having someone there who wanted to comfort her, who would be hurt if she didn’t wake him to seek it. Anna smiled. She would give up everything to have this for the rest of her life. All her money, her title, everything. Everything she had ever wanted in life was in his warm embrace and the steady beat of his heart. 

Kristoff clearly thought things were unable to work between them when this was over, but Anna would do whatever it took to prove him wrong. 

~ ~ ~

A car pulled up and parked on the other side of the road under the overpass. Kristoff didn’t recognize the vehicle, but he knew it was Dan. The man appeared a moment later, stretching out his back and lingering by the side of his car.

He turned to Anna. “I’ll be right back.” She nodded and Kristoff got out of the car.

“Dan,” he greeted the man as he approached.

“How you doin’, kid?” The detective offered his hand.

Kristoff shook it. “Honestly, about the usual.”

“That bad, huh?”

Kristoff gave a little chuckle and glanced over his shoulder at Anna where she was watching him from the car. 

“Maybe not that bad this time.” He looked back at Dan. “Listen, I am facing down with that fucking asshole tonight and I know they are going to search me so I am going in clean. I want you nearby with a parabolic. I’m going to get him to talk and I want to get it all on tape so I can take this fucker down once and for all.”

“You sure that’s safe? That dude has some serious muscle with him.”

“Well, I’ve gone through five of them already so I’ll take my chances.”

“You got a piece?”

“Several, but I won’t have them on me. Last thing I need is another gun to dodge bullets from.”

Dan blinked at him. “Do you really think it’ll come to a shootout?”

Kristoff shrugged. “I won’t put anything past this guy.”

The detective’s expression became concerned. “It isn’t smart to walk into this without protection, Kristoff. Maybe we should bring in some of my guys on this. Make it official.”

He was already shaking his head. “Can’t do it. He owns cops. I just have no idea who or how many.”

Dan sighed. “This fucking corrupt force. It makes me sick.”

“You and me both. That’s why I can’t bring anyone else in on this, Dan. Even if you pulled out the surveillance equipment, it might get back to him through the channels he has set up and he would know what we were up to. I got the shit myself in the car,” Kristoff cocked his thumb over his shoulder.

Dan’s eyes slid to the car for the first time. “ _Christ_ , right in my own precinct?”

“I have no idea how deep his pockets are, but I would be willing to put money on it that he has an informant in every precinct in Manhattan.”

The older man sighed and looked Kristoff in the eyes again. “Do you have anything for me that I can go on to find out who and start shaking them all down?”

“I only have the description of one man. He was… spying on my client.” Kristoff was helpless to look over his shoulder at her again. Anna had not moved an inch and was watching them with intensity. 

“Well, tell me. Maybe I can nab this guy beforehand and-”

“I’m out of time, Dan. If I come out of this we can go after the dirty cops afterwards. Right now I just need you there for me, with the mic, ready to catch this fucker with his pants down.”

Dan nodded. “Anything, Kristoff. You know that.”

He glanced quickly back at Anna once more before giving Dan the details. It was all to go down in the yard at the back of an abandoned industrial building. He gave Dan the address and told him to be in position by eleven for the midnight meet. The detective assured him he would stay hidden and discreet, agreeing that Hans would absolutely have someone watching the property in hopes of nabbing Kristoff should he be stupid enough to check it out beforehand.

His friend took all the equipment that Kristoff had gathered for the operation and left with a shake of his hand. With a sigh, Kristoff slid back behind the wheel of the car and looked at Anna.

“We’re good,” he said quietly to answer the question in her eyes. 

She nodded, looking on the verge of tears, before sliding over and pulling him into a fierce hug.

“What now?” she whispered.

“A few more stops. Then use the last of the cash for some food and get ready for tonight.”

“I’m scared, Kristoff.”

“Don’t worry, Anna. I will be fine and we’ll get Hans to confess.” 

She hugged him tighter and he did the same thing at the very beginning of the case; he made her a promise that he was unsure he would be able to keep. 

“I promise I’ll be okay.”

*****

Daniel Jacob Caldwell the 3rd sipped on a cup of strong black coffee as he sat at his desk, pondering the situation he found himself in. His partner was out doing some sort of errand and he enjoyed the quiet moment to de-stress and reflect. He had been running himself ragged these last few days.

Oddly enough, the first time he had ever met Kristoff came to mind. The poor kid, he was a fucking mess the day he wandered into the police station, looking like absolute shit and stinking of booze, asking to speak to the lead detective in the investigation of the murder of one Betty Peterson.

Dan had sat the kid down and given him some water and coffee, getting him somewhat sobered up before interrogating him to find out why he was there and why he cared so much about that case. The blond didn’t cry, but it looked like he was close, and Dan’s heart went out to him.

Kristoff gave him his sob story, the whole PI thing, the whole plan to run off to the Bahamas with her after they had proof of her husband’s crimes and infidelity, the heart wrenching realization of what had happened. Dan knew it was wrong to divulge details of the case, but he felt so bad for the broken man sitting before him.

He painted a very clear picture for the kid from what the neighbours said.

The blond left shortly after and Dan knew he was going to go find the nearest bottle. He used the database to look the guy up and got an address for his office with the mind that he’d check on him in a few days.

He hadn’t needed to. Kristoff showed up the next day in clean clothes, smelling better after clearly having showered, and thanked Dan for his help. They got to talking and he ended up offering Kristoff his direct number and to call him if he ever needed a hand with a case.

Then he forgot about all of it until two years later when his phone rang one night as he was slipping his coat on to head home after a brutally long day. It was Kristoff, asking for help in getting information for a family who had suspected their daughters’ husband had killed her and hidden the body. The daughter was flighty and impulsive, Kristoff told him, but according to her mother, would never have just ran away without a word as her husband claimed. Dan promised that he would help and look it up right away, hung up, then figured this PI stuff was just minor league shit anyway. Nothing like what a cop actually did. With a big yawn, he decided that it could wait and he would look it up in the morning.

That night while Dan slept, the man Kristoff was investigating came at him in his office. Dan woke to find that the man was in the ICU, beaten within an inch of his life, and Kristoff was under arrest at the hospital, recovering from multiple, near fatal knife wounds. 

It didn’t take a lot of investigating to discover that Kristoff’s side of the story was true in how it had all played out. Kristoff was attacked by the guy with the knife, fought him off with his bare hands, then the perp was made to pay for even attempting to kill him.

Twenty-four hours after that, they found his wife’s body buried under the garden in their back yard. The missing persons case on her was dismissed and the case of her murder was closed. Kristoff was let go without being charged.

It was Dan who reached out to him that time, to thank him for his help and apologize for not looking it up that night. Kristoff didn’t seem phased by it one way or another and the two started to collaborate on cases. He would call Dan when he needed help through official police channels and Dan would call him when there was something he wanted looked into outside of them. They even went so far as to exchange home numbers for if the shit really hit the fan. It wasn’t like they ever had dinner at each other’s houses or even went for a beer or anything, but they considered each other a friend. 

Perhaps that was why Dan was sick to his stomach at the prospect of what he now had to do.

As soon as his partner returned to his desk, Dan picked up the phone and dialed a number he would rather forget.

“Ah, Detective Caldwell,” said the smooth and arrogant voice on the other line. “So good to hear from you. I have been anxiously awaiting your call.”

He swallowed thickly, glancing at his partner who gave him a curt nod.

“He won’t be wired or carrying because he knows you’re going to search him. He wants me stationed nearby with a parabolic mic to get your confession.”

“And the girl? I know he isn’t going to bring her, so where is she going to be?”

“I couldn’t get that out of him, Hans. Not without tipping him off.”

Silence for a moment. “I see.” 

The man was not pleased but there really was nothing Dan could do about it. If he asked Kristoff where his client was going to be while this all went down, he would know immediately that Dan was in Westergaard’s pocket. With how he had been protectively checking on her, how pissed off he clearly was at Hans, he had no doubt Kristoff would come after him if he ever found out. Hell, with this red-head in the picture, the big kid would probably kill him.

“Well, no matter.” Hans’s voice was as cold as death. “I don’t intend to let that pathetic excuse of a PI away with his life. Once he’s gone, we can find Anna. She’s too stupid to survive without him. In fact, it’s very likely we won’t even need to look for her since I am sure her first instinct will be to go to the cops. She is so naïve she might even reach out to you.”

Dan had no answer for that. He swallowed again, his throat dry, wondering how he had ever let himself get into this position in the first place.


	17. Chapter 17

They were completely out of cash now except for a pocket full of change.

Anna finished the remainder of her street vendor hot dog and the can of coke then discarded the trash into the bin beside the park bench they were sitting on. There hadn’t been any words between them while they ate and watched the sun set over the upper Bay.

It was close enough to her penthouse to give her a sense of anxiety, but she knew they were just needles in a haystack now. Still, it did not give her as much a sense of ease as she might have hoped. When this night was behind them, Anna was going to book them a suite at the Waldorf with the intention of not setting foot outside of it for a solid week. She was going to make sure that Kristoff knew how much she loved and appreciated him.

“What’s the first thing you want to do, after this?” Anna asked him, unable to stand the silence any longer. The closer this confrontation came, the more she wanted to be closer to Kristoff and never ever let him go.

He smiled, his eyes remaining on the Bay and the last lingering colour in the sky.

“Spend all day in bed with you.”

Anna giggled. “Me too, but besides that? Read a book? Eat a specific meal? Watch sports?”

He leaned back on the bench and looked at Anna, amusement written on his features. 

“Why do you ask?”

“Because I am making plans.”

His face fell at that, making Anna feel uneasy, like he thought that there was a chance he wasn’t going to live to see the sunrise. Or maybe it was that stubbornness in him that firmly believed Anna’s life would be able to continue without him. Regardless, her nerves needed some happy things to look forward to or she was going to scream or burst into tears or just go insane.

“Please, Kristoff. Just humor me.”

He regarded her for a moment before he nodded. 

“After a good sleep, Eggs Benedict, for a very late breakfast. It’s my favourtie. With some good strong coffee,” he smiled. “And then make love to you until you ask me to stop.”

Anna blushed, tucking a stay hair behind her ear as he continued. 

“Maybe a candlelit dinner in the evening. Something rich and satisfying. Sharing the chocolatiest dessert that we can find and then having a shower together before slipping into bed naked and watching whatever the hell is on television while you talk to me about anything under the sun that you want to discuss.”

Anna swallowed hard, emotion choking her throat. God she loved him. So much.

“That… sounds perfect.”

“My idea of heaven on Earth,” he muttered softly and leaned over to kiss her.

Passion soon took over and Kristoff got up off the bench and grabbed Anna’s hand. He led her back to the stolen truck and they drove away. Anna had no idea where they were going to go without any cash, but he clearly knew the city well, parking in an alley, headlights first into an alcove big enough for the width of the truck and nothing else. They couldn’t even get out if they wanted to, the doors were so close to the cinderblock walls.

As soon as he put the truck in park, Anna was sliding towards him across the bench seat. They met in the middle, Anna turning and twisting herself to straddle him as their lips met in sloppy open-mouthed kisses. Her need for him was so great that she knew this was probably going to give her release in record time.

It was awkward as hell, slipping out of her jeans and panties, but she managed well enough with the raw desire to have him inside of her spurring her on. He pulled his own jeans and underwear down to his ankles as she worked, and as soon as Anna was free of clothing from the waist down, she positioned herself above him.

Anna stared into his eyes as she took him in, mouth hanging open and intensity in her gaze, like there were in his. She would never get tired of this feeling. When he was fully encased within her was now one of her favourtie and most comfortable sensations. It was the calm before the storm that was in his eyes overtook him and he brought her to climax.

She recalled the second time they had come together, his passion and forceful movements, giving into animalistic nature and yet not causing her an ounce of pain with that natural gentleness within him. How someone so powerful could be so precise in the way he took her, was still astounding to Anna.

“Fuck, Anna. Christ, you feel so good.”

That brought her back and she started to move. He very quickly matched her pace, his hand coming between them to rub at her clit. 

She couldn’t talk through the feeling of her wild hunger being satiated by his touch and his cock. The only thing she had in her mind was a sudden and desperate need to climax with him. The problem with that was she was already so close she didn’t know if the timing would work out.

Kristoff’s hot breath tickled her face and she inhaled it with every one of her own deep gasps. 

“I need you… to come with me,” she breathed. 

His guttural groan brought her eyes open and she stared into the powerful depths of his eyes as his pace quickened, his hand leaving her clit to grab her other hip. He gripped her, moving her more forcefully against him while he stared into her eyes.

His head was resting against the back window and Anna leaned forward to rest her forehead against his. They stayed that way until Anna was gasping a moment later, ready to reach the precipice and hoping that he was going to be there with her.

He was. And _fuck_ , it was so good to feel him orgasm with her. Easily the most intimate and amazing thing she had done with him so far. The sounds they made for one another, the heavy breathing, all while their lips were only an inch apart while their minds were flooded with endorphins. 

Anna relaxed against him, aimed to enjoy the feeling of him inside of her as long as she possibly could. He let her, pulling her into a hug with her head tucked against his shoulder. 

After a time, they separated. Anna used her panties to clean them and tossed them on the floor of the truck, slipping on her jeans without them. Underwear really didn’t seem all that important right now. Now that they were apart, that they were no longer joined as one, Anna felt an ache deep in her heart. They were going to have to say goodbye very soon and she was terrified that this was not going to go as smoothly as planned.

She had confidence in Kristoff, absolutely. But this was his life he was putting on the line for her and she knew things were not going to be as safe as he kept telling they were. He was going to be putting himself in very real danger, against some very real guns with basically nothing but his wits. 

It killed her to think there was a possibility he could have missed something.

Without a word he put the truck in reverse and backed out of the alley. Soon they were on their way to where Anna was supposed to wait while Kristoff met with Hans. She didn’t know how she was honestly going to handle her nerves, but she knew she would have to figure it out soon.

It wasn’t long before they pulled up to a building. Kristoff assured her she would be safe. She trusted him and she knew that, but it wasn’t her she was worried about. All it could take for one thing in Kristoff’s plan to go wrong and then…

He sighed. “It’s time.”

Anna nodded, not trusting herself to talk.

He regarded her for a moment before reaching down and grabbing her hands. 

“I promise you, Anna. I will see you in a few hours.”

Tears pooled in her eyes but she refused to shed them. Not until he was gone. Steeling herself, she swallowed hard.

“In a few hours then.”

He gave her a soft but undeniably sad smile, and leaned over to kiss her. It was quick and chaste, meant to promise more, but as soon as he pulled back, Anna chased his lips with her own and gave him a proper parting kiss.

She swore she could taste his promise in it.

~ ~ ~

Kristoff parked on the street and walked down the alley to the back of the industrial building. His nerves were calm and his heart was steady in his chest with the confidence that he was going to pull this off. Or perhaps it was the lingering kiss that Anna gave him. She had been in tears, but it spurred him on even more to make sure he was successful with his endeavor.

It was a cool late summer night, the faint breeze carrying with it the smells of the ocean and memories from a beach that seemed like it belonged in someone else’s life. 

He knew Anna wanted to keep seeing him when this was over. He gladly would for a time, but he had to wonder what would come after. It wasn’t like he was destined for some white sandy beaches for the rest of his days. In all likelihood, he would keep doing this job and Anna would be unable to accept him in such a capacity. Not that he would blame her. 

And yet, that call to be a different man had not diminished. In fact, it had become even stronger the more he spent with Anna. Perhaps there was a light at the end of a very dark tunnel for him. The only question would be if he was able to give up most of what made him him, for the life of a kept man. That was the struggle, one that he could not deny held most of the ground at this point in his internal argument.

Whatever the outcome, he would walk into it with an open mind and make decisions along the way. He owed her that much at the very least.

Kicking away discarded carboard boxes and empty bottles of booze, he slipped through a broken part of the chain link fence that surrounded the property. Hans had told him it would be there, and with little other option to get in or gain the element of surprise, he was forced to comply with the asshole.

The back of the yard was littered with sea cans that opened up into an empty space at the loading bay of the building. Kristoff stepped into the clearing slowly where a black SUV with tinted windows sat at an idle. It was no doubt packed with him and his stupid muscle-bound idiots.

He stopped in the middle of the space between the mess of shipping containers and the vehicle. It took a few moments before the driver finally popped open the door and moved to open the back for his boss. Hans stepped out and adjusted his suit with a smug grin.

“Good evening, Mr. Bjorgman.”

Kristoff didn’t respond. He just started Hans down as the bodyguard who had been in the driver’s seat approached him.

“You’re new,” Kristoff mused as big hands frisked him very roughly. “I went through a handful of you guys a few days ago.” He never took his eyes off Hans as the prick started back at him with smug amusement. “Let me guess, you applied for the job and was hired on the spot? Well, just don’t fail your boss tonight or he’ll have you killed just like he did the other guys that failed him recently.”

The guard didn’t even flinch and Kristoff did not expect him to. Finally, he seemed satisfied that Kristoff was clean and turned to walk back and stood behind Hans and folded his arms in an attempt to look intimidating.

He raised his voice to talk to however many men remained in the SUV. “You hear that fellas? I know you’re all new to the job, but your boss here didn’t tell you that you pay for mistakes with your life.”

Hans grinned at him. “Are you quite finished?”

“Just trying to warn them who you really are.”

“Hmmm. You intrigue me, do you know that? You come here, without my fiancé, and you think that I will let you leave alive. Curious.”

Kristoff had his own smug grin for that. “Did you honestly think that I was going to bring her?”

“Not for a moment. Still, I do wonder why you are even here then.”

“To gloat.”

Hans blinked at him and then have him a cruel chuckle. “Gloat? Are you serious?”

“Dead serious.” His smile widened.

The prick seemed to ponder the idea for a moment. “Alright, I acquiesce. Let me have it then.”

“I figured it out. Every single little detail.”

Hans’s amusement only grew. “Enlighten me, please.”

“One thing I am a little hazy on before we get started. Why on earth, did you feel it was necessary to murder my secretary?”

“Well, to be honest I was in a rather terrible mood the day I found out that my fiancé was going to be paying you a visit. My men and I marched right over to your office with an idea to end you right then and there, only you were on a case or whatever the fuck it is that you do. She could identify me so I had to get rid of her.”

“You had her killed. The same way you had Joanne killed.”

“Indeed. The mafia is nothing if not efficient.” 

“Is that why you are using Anna’s charity to launder money for them?”

Hans’s grin didn’t falter but his eyes shifted, getting sharper and more focused.

“You aren’t as dumb as you look. How did you learn about that?”

“I told you Hans, I figured you out.”

The smile finally faltered just a little. “Do tell me then, what else you supposedly know.”

“I know that you are going to frame Anna with other things. Probably with your own white-collar crimes like insider trading or labour racketeering. No matter which ones, when we are done here, we are going to expose you as framing her for them and you are going to go to jail.”

His smile was completely gone now. “It doesn’t matter what I am dabbling in, you won’t be able to prove a thing.”

“Really? I already have evidence of how you were using Anna’s charity for your own ill-gotten gains.”

“Bullshit,” he spat. 

Kristoff just shrugged his shoulders. “It’s only a matter of time before I get evidence of all the rest you are trying to frame Anna with.”

The asshole’s eye twitched before a thought seemed to occur to him and his cruel smile returned. 

“Alright. You have me there. I am laundering money with her charity and I do plan to frame her for several felonies that I have been carrying out. Is that what you want to hear? Me to confess all of my crimes?”

“It’s a start.”

He hummed with anger. “And I suppose you don’t fear that I will act on my threat to end the Queens life.”

“You don’t know where she is, Hans.”

The man snarled at him. “I’ve had enough of this! You don’t know half of what you think you do.”

Kristoff remained stoic, confident with his upper hand. This bastard had no idea what he knew.

Hans’s smiled softly. “I’ll prove it to you.” He turned his head slightly over his shoulder, though his eyes stayed on Kristoff, and he spoke in a sing-song voice. “Oh Daniel? Why don’t you join our little party?”

Kristoff startled and turned towards the movement from the side of the building where two men appeared. One was the guy who had been on the tape at the Gramercy Park Hotel and then later in his office, spying on Anna. 

The other was the only cop he was ever friends with.

“Dan.” The name fell from Kristoff’s lips with disbelief as his entire body sagged with defeat.


	18. Chapter 18

Anna’s heart was beating so hard in her chest she thought she might pass out.

She was watching it all happen through binoculars, the voices of Kristoff and that sick fuck carrying ever so faintly through to her from the earphones secured to the head of the man beside her. She looked down for the hundredth time to make sure the tape was still recording.

Right on cue, just as Kristoff said, he had pissed Hans off enough for him to reveal the fact that Dan was one of his dirty cops. She had to hand it to Kristoff, he really was a fabulous actor. He looked positively crushed to ‘discover’ that his friend was working for the bad guys.

That was why she stayed in the car when Kristoff talked to Dan earlier in the day. He had to keep up the air of belief that his friend was going to help him and having Anna visibly nervous at his side wasn’t going to help with that. Not to mention the temptation for Dan to ask where she was going to be when this all went down.

Kristoff had explained it all to her in that first hotel room. Anna was amazed at the smallest things that were said that tipped him off. She still didn’t fully understand but she had every intention of asking him when this was all well behind them. 

He told her as soon as Dan was revealed to him was when he would be able to let Hans know that he had the upper hand. Only now was when the real danger started, because when Hans found out that Kristoff knew what was going on the whole time, the shooting was going to start. They were prepared for that, but Anna was still deathly afraid that he would end up catching a wayward bullet.

One of their afternoon stops had been to see his homeless friend Earl. Kristoff had slipped the dishevelled beggar one of the loaded pistols and told him to wander onto the site and stash the gun somewhere. The eyes he was sure where on the property would have acted without hesitation if it were Kristoff, but none of them were likely to bat an eye at a homeless person scrounging garbage’s or containers for scraps. Especially in an abandoned building. Earl had done as he was asked and when they met him later on in the day, told Kristoff with amazing detail where he had stashed the piece. 

While Earl was off on that critical task, Kristoff and Anna had snuck into the office of her charity. It was strange to be skulking around even though she often stopped there after hours for one thing or another. Kristoff was hyper vigilant going in, adding to her unease. He wanted to make sure there was no one around and she had to agree with that wholeheartedly. Inside, they obtained all the ledgers and the files they would need and then drove to meet Kristoff’s Dad. 

When they arrived, Cliff showed them the evidence he had gathered that Hans and the Detective, as well as his partner, were in cahoots. There were very clear pictures of the three men meeting in central park. Not only that, he had made some calls and obtained the phone records for Anna’s penthouse and the precinct in which Dan worked. Several calls were made to and from Dan’s direct line to Hans over the past week and a half. 

It was enough evidence to get someone to dig into bank accounts when this was over.

Afterwards they gave Cliff all the documentation from Anna’s charity and he promised that he would be able to get to the bottom of it after the meet. 

The last and most crucial piece of the puzzle, was the confession. That was why her and Kristoff had purchased not one, but two, parabolic mics. He knew that Dan was going to betray him and had set up to get the confessions on tape another way.

Cliff looked sideways at here from where he was stationed with the headset behind the mic.

“He’ll be okay,” he smiled, but even Anna could see his statement was made with feigned confidence.

They didn’t actually have all the evidence that Hans was the one laundering the money for the mob yet, but the lie was part of the plan to get Hans flustered enough to keep talking. As long as Kristoff could keep up the illusion of being hoodwinked a while longer.

~ ~ ~

Dan felt for the kid, he really did. His heart sank to see him completely wilt with the realization that he was now well and truly fucked.

He stood beside Hans, his partner Duke coming up to stand beside him, all staring down a beaten man. It was Duke’s fault he ended up being dirty and he would always resent him for that. He could not resent, however, the money that helped him get his wife the experimental cancer treatment that she needed. Unlike most cops he knew, he loved his wife dearly, and would do whatever it took to keep her safe and healthy, no matter how many crimes he committed or bridges he burned along the way. He would even rat on his own mother, were she still alive.

_“Dan…”_

It sounded a bit like a question but Dan knew that it wasn’t. The kid would have figured it all out the second he laid eyes on him.

“You see then, _Investigator_ ,” Hans began to mock the poor kid. “You, in fact, _do not_ have it all figured out. You have once again, failed. Quite miserably, I might add.”

That clicked something in Kristoff and his face turned red and twisted with anger, furious tears filling his eyes. “I am going to fucking kill you.”

Hans cackled. “I would genuinely like to see you try.” He gestured with his hand. “I have my police friends here, my trusty body guards, and you have absolutely _nothing._ Unless you give me what I want, you are not leaving here with your life.”

“How many?” he asked through gritted teeth. “How many dirty cops are in your pocket?”

“Plenty,” Hans laughed. “Enough that with using them all to help the mob along with laundering money, I am well on my way to running this town.”

“You’re delusional. There’s no way the mob would let a fuck like you have that much power.”

His hand came up to his chin in a mocking manner. “Well then you don’t know the full extent of my plan as you claim, do you?”

Kristoff hung his head low, perfectly still but clearly seething with rage. His hands were pressed into white knuckled fists, and he was breathing deeply… like he was… preparing for something.

_Don’t make a move kid, or you are going to end up dead._

“Good attempt at getting me though, I will give you that,” Hans mocked him like he was a schoolyard bully. “I especially enjoyed how you were getting me to confess my many crimes like you thought you were actually going to catch me and turn me in. I am untouchable, _private dick_. I could have a thousand more people killed and never be charged with even a parking ticket.”

Dan had to wonder where Hans was going with this. Did he want the kid to charge him so that he could just get his guards to shoot the poor bastard and be done with him, or was he twisting the knife as much as possible for pleasure, like how a cat plays with a mouse before killing it.

“I told you this wasn’t going to be pleasant,” Hans sneered. “Now tell me where my fiancé is and _maybe_ I will grant you a quick and painless death."

The blond’s body suddenly relaxed and he lifted his head ever so slightly and he looked at Hans, his eyes barely visible under his eyebrows. Dan watched with growing horror as Kristoff slowly grinned.

“Fuck, he knows,” Dan muttered.

“What?” Duke asked, as if he was talking to an idiot.

“He fucking knows. He figured it all out.” The detective took a step back from where he was standing between Hans and his partner, looking around at the surrounding buildings, wondering where the other mic was set up. Both men turned towards him now, faces growing with concern. 

“He has ears on us!” Dan shouted.

That’s when Kristoff moved. He ran sideways and leapt behind a large discarded piece of heavy industrial equipment that had been abandoned to rust and deteriorate in the elements. The previously still scene turned into a frenzy. Duke pulled his gun while bodyguards poured from the SUV and surround their screaming and swearing boss. 

“Shoot him! End that fuck!” he raged. 

Gunshots pierced the air as Duke and all five of Hans’s men emptied their magazine into the piece of machinery that Kristoff was cowering behind. This was insanity. There was no way Hans was going to get out of this with the amount of ruckus created from his impulsive order to have everyone open fire. It wasn’t going to be long before this place was going to be crawling with cops. Whether they were dirty ones among them or not, this was not going to go away. Especially not with everything said on a tape somewhere that would no doubt be logged as evidence in this future case.

Kristoff had played Hans and the smug bastard had well and truly fucked himself.

Well, at least there was no reason to continue on with this fucking bullshit any longer now, was there?

Dan pulled his gun on his partner, but not quick enough for the younger man not to notice.

~ ~ ~

Kristoff grabbed the gun from where Earl had hidden it inside a shallow recess in the rusted skeleton of the machine and waited for the grouping of morons to empty their magazines. It only took a few seconds and as soon as there was the slightest pause in firing, he leaned around from the furthest side of the machinery and shot three times.

He took out two body-guards; one down with two in his calf and the other cradling his destroyed shooting hand. Before slipping back behind cover, he saw Dan struggling with his partner, both with their guns locked tightly in each others free fists, and both trying to simultaneously shoot one another without getting shot themselves. It was good to know his old friend wasn’t as far gone as he had thought. Whatever the reason Dan betrayed him, Kristoff knew it was probably one he could understand.

The metal at his back boomed as bullets slammed into his cover. Moving to the opposite side, he waited for a break, more difficult this time with how sporadic the firing had become, and then took his chance. He had barely peered around the side of the machinery when metal exploded above his head. He quickly ducked back behind cover, feeling the heat of several stings in his flesh. The side of his face and the large gash on his firearm were inconsequential, but the metal he felt in his neck caused him immediate and great concern. Reaching up he gently felt around, letting out a sigh of relief to realize the shrapnel was not as close to his jugular as he initially thought. He plucked the metal from his skin and forgot about it for the time being. 

Waiting for another break he acted as soon as she shooting stopped for even a half a second. This time he managed to take out one more guard before Hans started to scream loud enough to be heard over the gunfire.

“Stop! Stop, you useless fucks! STOP!”

The firing ceased and Kristoff quickly took a quick peek at the situation. In addition to thee of Hans’s guards writhing in pain on the ground, Dans partner had gotten better of him during the hail of gunfire. Dan was laid out on the dirt, clutching what was no doubt a gunshot wound to his abdomen. His heart sunk to see Dan’s weaselly partner had got the drop on the older man.

“What’s your play now, Hans?” Kristoff shouted over to the group of men. Despite fearing for his old friend, he was not able to keep the smile of satisfaction from his face.

_“You tell me where my fiancé is right now you… you fuckingasdhoiashdoih!”_

The little man was so livid he was screaming himself raw and becoming incoherent. It was time to add some much-needed pressure.

“Hey you big guys. You heard what your boss said, didn’t you? He enjoys disposing of inconveniences and any of you who now have an extra hole or two are going to get one more when you take a bullet to the brain for having the audacity to get shot.”

_“Getouthereyoupussyassmotherfuckerandgivemebackmywoman!”_

Kristoff ignored the asshole and peeked around the opposite corner from his cover to see Hans’s henchmen share an uneasy glance. Except one of the two left standing. That bastard was going to go down with the ship and was probably going to cause him a lot of trouble. 

Dan’s partner remained where he was, standing over the older man with his gun still pointed at him. Only now he looked incredibly uneasy to be caught in such a predicament. He looked around like he was just realizing the scope of the situation for the first time.

“Dan?” Kristoff called, looking at his gun to see how many bullets were left in the magazine. “You dead?”

He heard a weak chuckle carry over the cool night air. “Not quite, kid. But soon.”

“Shit,” he whispered to himself. The sooner this was wrapped up the better.

“Get him! This is what I pay you shitheads for! Get off your lazy asses and go kill that fucking fuck!”

Sirens finally started to wail in the not too far distance and Kristoff peeked again at the scene playing out behind his cover. Dan’s partner was clearly starting to panic now. It only took a second longer for him to drop his pistol and run. The three bodyguards who were injuring were limping back towards the SUV, while the remaining two were staring each other down, completely ignoring their boss. 

This is exactly what Kristoff had wanted to happen.

Still observing the scene, Hans snapped. 

“I have to do everything myself,” he shouted and grabbed one of the discarded guns on the ground. Not one of his guards expected him to do so and were completely taken by surprise when opened up on the three injured men, killing and mortally wounding them despite wild and ill-placed shots.

That was when the guard still standing who bought into what Kristoff was telling him, turned his gun on Hans’s last defense and shot him in the chest before taking off towards the SUV. Hans stood in his way, raising his pistol, but even from back here Kristoff could see the slide was open and the gun was empty. The big man easily shoved Hans to the ground, got in the SUV and took off.

Kristoff finally came out from behind his cover. Hans scrambled to get up, looking stunned and unsure of how to proceed now that his last line of defense was laying on the ground in a growing pool of blood. 

The sirens were wailing loudly now and it was only a matter of moments before this was all going to be over. With the gun empty, Hans had no choice. He stared wild and unbelieving at Kristoff a moment before he threw the gun haphazardly in his direction and took off in a sprint towards the side of the building where Dan and his partner had initially emerged.

Kristoff chased after him, sparing his friend a glance from where he lay on the ground still clutching his stomach. His face was ashen and he was swiftly running out of time, but he could not afford to let Hans get away. 

“I’m sorry, kid,” Dan said quietly as he passed.

“Me too,” Kristoff threw over his shoulder then continued his pursuit.

He gained on the little man quickly, following around blind corner until he came to find Hans at a dead end, scrambling desperately to try and climb over a ten-foot chain link fence with razor wire on the top. Kristoff was easily able to walk up and grab the man by the back of his expensive suit jacket and yank him to the ground. 

Then he returned the favour and kicked Hans as hard as he could in the side.

He screamed, and Kristoff kicked him again, harder. He wanted to lift up the gun and end him so badly, but not as much as he wanted him to _suffer._

He was about to haul the fuck to his feet and rearrange his face when someone shouted from behind him.

“Freeze! Hands up! Drop the weapon!”

Kristoff immediately complied and dropped the gun to place his hands on the back of his head. 

“This man assaulted me! He was going to kill me! Arrest him!” Hans was rolling over, trying to crawl around Kristoff to what he thought was going to be his saving grace.

It was too bad for him that Kristoff had taken this into account as well. His Dad was not a friend to any cop, what investigative journalist who took pride in exposing the corrupt force would be, but he did have a very influential link in that chain.

“Step aside, sir.”

Kristoff happily did as he was asked why two uniforms approached Hans and dragged him to his feet to place him in handcuffs.

“Wait! What the hell do you think you are doing? This man assaulted me and tried to shoot me! Arrest him!”

“Sir, you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. If you do not-”

“What the hell is happening? Why-”

“I told you, Hans,” Kristoff interrupted. “I had you all figured out.”

The little man blinked at him like he realized that this was in fact, real. Kristoff smiled, happy to drive that nail home.

“We recorded you. Everything you said. And as I promised, we will uncover the fact that you were using Anna for your own crimes.”

The two uniforms waited. Young kids, in Kristoff’s eyes. They had likely been read-in on the situation and were letting Kristoff have his moment. One of them was bigger, with a shine of excitement in his eyes. It reminded Kristoff a lot of himself when he imagined what it would be like to one day wear a uniform. Only now, he was actually glad that that option was taken away from him.

Hans spat at his feet. “Not even man enough to kill me. You’re just a bug pussy, you know that.”

“I’ve never killed anyone, Hans. I’m not about to start on a piece of shit like you.”

“Big mistake asshole, because when I make bail-”

“You are going to jail, Hans. You are going to experience first hand what it is like to have your control stripped from you the way that you have been stripping it from other people.”

Hans glared at him, daring him to make any sort of move that might help him, which Kristoff was obviously not going to fall for.

He spoke slow and clear, so that the fuck could understand. “I want you to have to beg the bigger guy not to do things to you, only to realize there is nothing you can say or do to dissuade that bigger guy from getting his way. I want you to feel what it means to wake up every goddamn day in fear of what you are going to face, for a very, very long time, because you are going to be someone else’s toy now.”

Hans swallowed, his eyes growing wide and panicked. “It’s… it’s not like that.”

“I’ve been there, remember? No matter how bad you might think it is, it’s worse.”

“They can’t do anything to me… I…”

Kristoff smiled at the way the little man was starting to shake. “I’m a big guy, Hans. A lot bigger than you. I didn’t let anyone fuck with me, had to physically fight them off almost daily, but oh boy are they gonna fuck with a dainty little prick like you.”

Hans broke down at that and started to snivel and cry as the uniforms finally dragged him away and finished reading him his Miranda rights. Kristoff listened to them as they dragged him down the alleys back into the yard. He just stood there, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. 

It was over.

It was finally, mercifully, _over._

Only now did his body start to shake. 


	19. Chapter 19

There were tears in her eyes as she stood on the edge of the police tape that had cordoned off the scene. It was a controlled kind of chaos at least, made to seem a lot more urgent with all the flashing lights around them and the sheer amount of the police force on scene.

Hans had been led to the back of a squad car. Anna saw him from where she stood next to Cliff as he talked to the Police, but he hadn’t even looked her way. He looked completely broken and Anna would have smiled at that if Kristoff were with her, but he was still nowhere in sight.

Dan had been taken away almost as soon as the ambulance arrived on scene. She knew nothing about medicine or healthcare, but even she could tell the man was just barely hanging on. There her feelings were conflicted. He had betrayed Kristoff, and yet in the end, tried to help him. If he were to live, she was going to find out the truth regarding the reason he had done what he did.

Her hands came up, hugging herself against the cold night. She had Kristoff’s hooded sweatshirt on, but it just didn’t seem enough to ward off the chill she felt in her bones. Her nerves were a wreck, and despite evidence to the contrary, she worried over Kristoff.

Then she saw him.

He emerged from the scene like an apparition, his eyes locked onto hers. Anna ignored everything, ignored the police tape and all the eyes around them, and ran to him. 

There was a moment of shock to see tears shimmering in his eyes before she threw herself at him, only to be quickly forgotten as soon as she was in his embrace. He had never held her so tightly, so firmly against him. Her feet were dangling in the air he had such a good grip on her, and she relished in every second of it, hugging him back as fiercely as she could.

That’s when her tears came and there were a lot of them.

By the time she stopped sobbing, she realized that Kristoff had her in his lap, sitting on the ground, and as she slowly looked around and blinked, the scene was only a fraction of the turmoil it was before.

His gaze was steadfast as she looked at him. His thumb came up and wiped the dampness from her cheeks in the most loving and tender way anyone had ever touched her.

“We are still going to have to give out statements before we can leave,” he said softly.

Anna nodded. He had told her all of this beforehand. She moved from his lap so that he could stand and help her to her feet. As soon as she was up, he wrapped his arm around her and led her over to where his Dad was talking to a distinguished looking man in an impressively decorated uniform.

“Ah, you must be Kristoff,” the man said as they approached and stuck out his hand.

Kristoff shook it. “Commissioner Brooks. I sure am glad to see you took my father’s call.”

The older man gave him a knowing nod of his head. “Get yourself checked out by EMS and then I’d love to have a chat with you.”

Kristoff nodded. “What about Dan? Did he…”

“He was in critical condition when the ambulance took him away. I’m afraid at this point I’m not sure.”

“And his partner?”

“Ah yes, Duke Morton. We are still looking for him but it will only be a matter of time before we find him. He couldn’t have gotten too far.”

“I can’t help but notice you’ve dropped the ‘detective’ from his name.”

Commissioner Brooks smiled brightly. “Can’t be a detective if you are a fugitive from the law. I listened to the tape. I know exactly how it all went down.”

“Dan… he… he was helping me… get to the bottom of the case. We were keeping it quiet for fear that-”

“I don’t believe a single word of that.” Kristoff visibly slumped at Anna’s side. “But, I’ll take the fact that you are willing to lie about it to protect him under consideration.”

Kristoff gave a quick nod, then moved towards a waiting ambulance. Anna let him go reluctantly while an EMT sat him on the back deck of the open vehicle and began to check him over. She had been so relieved to see him that only now did she notice that he was bleeding from several gashes and scrapes, the most alarming of which was coming from his neck and had stained the top of his white t-shirt. His leather jacket was removed and Anna was immediately shocked and alarmed again to see just how much he had been bleeding; his shirt was soaked red on that side all the way down to his waist.

She held back her tears, watching intently as Kristoff was cleaned and bandaged. When all was said and done and the EMT had told him he had no concerns for Kristoff’s injuries, Anna threw herself at him as soon as he was back on his feet.

He held her for a moment that was too short, interrupted by Commissioner Brooks ready to get to the bottom of things with Kristoff.

Anna listened half-heartedly, growing more and more tired as the night wore on and their ordeal fell further and further behind them. Another plain-clothed detective, older, like Dan was, pulled her away from Kristoff at one point to gather her statement. She held onto Kristoff’s hand defensively refusing to leave his side, until he gave her hand a little squeeze of encouragement that it was okay. Reluctantly, she let go and was led to a waiting squad car where she was handed a blanket and a cup of black coffee.

She ignored the drink and told them everything that happened since the day her sister asked her to find a Private Eye to look into her fiancé, then she answered all their questions, several of them repeated only phrased differently, and finally she was allowed to return to Kristoff’s side. He looked absolutely exhausted and Anna hoped that they would be allowed to leave soon. Without wanting to think about what they had gone through any longer, Anna turned her ears back to what Kristoff, Cliff, and the Commissioner, were saying.

“-records will show some of the calls placed to precincts and you should be able to track down some of the dirty cops.”

“I agree with you Cliff, for once,” the Commissioner smiled. “You know, for being a pain in my ass for nearly twenty years, I sure do owe you a debt of gratitude for tonight and agreeing to help me uncover all the men in the force who are dirty.”

“My pleasure,” Cliff smiled. “It’ll be a nice final feather in the hat of my illustrious career.”

“Don’t get too cocky,” Commissioner Brooks narrowed his eyes. “I still remember when you tried to come after me because you thought I was one of those bastards.”

Cliff raised his hands in defence. “Hey, I apologized for that. But it was pretty bad you didn’t realize your own partner was one of them.”

The Commissioner had no comeback for that, he only smirked and offered his hand to Cliff and then Kristoff. Both men shook it and he turned his back to walk away without another word between them.

“Come on, Anna,” Kristoff sighed. “Let’s get out of here.”

“Happily,” Anna whispered, but could not bring herself to smile.

They followed Cliff down the alleys and streets a few blocks to his waiting car. Kristoff did not hesitate to crawl into the back with Anna and his Dad drove chauffeured them away from the scene.

“Where to?” Cliff asked over his shoulder.

“The Fairmont… no… no wait.” He looked over at Anna and studied her eyes. “The Waldorf.”

Anna started into his captivating eyes, tired as they were, while Cliff took a left and headed in that direction.

“How? How did you know?”

“You mentioned making plans and eating meals and I knew there was no way in hell you would want to go back to your penthouse.”

“But the Waldorf… how did you know that was where I wanted to go?”

Kristoff smiled at her and shrugged his shoulders, then leaned back and rested his head against the top of the back seat and shut his eyes.

Anna shrugged to herself and snuggled up to his side as he hugged her tightly in return. 

~ ~ ~

It was nearly three-thirty in the morning by the time they walked into a suite at the famed Waldorf Astoria. Kristoff slipped the unburdened bellhop a twenty from a stack of cash his Dad had given him and bid the young man a good evening, then turned around and surveyed the lavish interior of the room.

Staying in such a place was foreign to him, but right now, very welcomed. 

He had slipped out of his bloody t-shirt on the way over and zipped his leather coat up all the way to hide his bare chest as they navigated the posh hotel and ignored how he was sure everyone was staring at his disheveled appearance. Now he unzipped it and found a closet near the door to hang it in.

Anna emerged from the bathroom with a fluffy white robe. 

“As promised,” she offered him the garment while her own lay across her arm.

“I think I need a quick shower before I slip into this,” he said, taking it from her.

“Me too. I’ll join you.”

He nodded, glad she would be joining him, but could not seem to bring himself to smile.

“I… Anna, I just mean a shower, you know? I can’t…”

Her eyes went wide. “No, I didn’t expect that! At all! Of course, maybe later, but not tonight.” Her gaze went to the floor. “I just… I just don’t want to leave your side right now.”

Kristoff smiled then, stepping up to her and tucking his finger under her chin and bringing it up so that she would look at him.

“I don’t want to leave yours either. And I am very much looking forward to showering with you.”

Her face softened with understanding and they both moved towards the bathroom. Anna started the hot water while Kristoff struggled to get his jeans off. For _ever loving fuck_ , he was tired. And sore. And relieved, and in love and scared and worried about his future and-

Anna’s hand came up and cupped his cheek. She was bare but his eyes never left hers as she reached down and helped him out of his pants and underwear. She then made him sit on the closed lid of the toilet to remove his socks and pointed towards the shower when he was as naked as she was.

He looked over to the steamy encloser to see it was more than big enough for two. In fact, there was a tile build bench at the back that looked particularly inviting. He got to his feet with a faint groan and stepped into the waiting shower with Anna. She must have noticed the look of longing in his eyes and made him sit on that bench while she stood before him, grabbed the hand-wand from the holder, and cleaned him.

As much as he wanted to stare at her beautiful naked form, his exhausted eyes closed and refused to open. He relished in every single feeling of Anna’s hands and the welcoming temperature of the water as she shampooed his hair. Only when he heard the concern in her voice, was he able to look at her.

“Your bandages are getting soaked. Maybe I-”

“No,” he sighed, letting his eyes close once more and blindly removed all the gauze and tape from his neck and then forearm. He placed the bandages beside him and let Anna finish cleaning his skin. 

When she was finished and told him to get out and head to bed while she finished up, he shook his head to wake himself up and stood. He remained in the shower, standing in front of Anna, as he took his turn to shampoo her hair. She closed her eyes and hummed her approval as Kristoff washed her long, beautiful, red strands. He aimed to wash her body as she had done to him, but she stopped him when her hair was rinsed and said that she was clean enough and just wanted bed.

It was hard to argue with that. 

Once they were dry and in their amazingly fresh smelling and soft bathrobes, they made their way to the King-sized bed and both dropped the garments they had been wearing for less than a minute to crawl between the sheets.

It was quite the distance for them to come together. Kristoff had never slept in a bed so large. The biggest he ever had was Queen-sized and even that was a lot larger than his lumpy double at home that his toes hung off the end of if he was sleeping on his stomach.

So much space, so much area to himself, when all he wanted to do was be as close to Anna as possible. It was unwanted and unnecessary. Would this be what Anna desired if they were to continue on? Would she get a lavish new place with all the luxury afforded to a Royal like her and insist on only the best? Would her place be as large as her Penthouse, or as immaculately decorated? Who was she on her own without someone else’s influence? Would she even be able to be that person if Kristoff and her were to stay together?

He let out a very quiet sigh as Anna snuggled her naked flesh against his. It was troublesome, but not so much that he was able to fight off the sleep that pressed upon him immediately.

*****

He had nightmares.

It was stupid. He hadn’t had dreams of any sort for the past few years, and now he was having nightmares when he needed sleep more than any other time he had ever been through.

Goddamn his stupid life.

Every time he woke, Anna would stir, and he would lay perfectly still, hoping that she would re-settle into sleep while his body was covered in a cold sweat and his heart hammered away in his chest. Then he laid awake and stared at the foreign ceiling for a moment before his exhaustion dragged him back down.

And it happened four times while he tried to catch up on rest from his and Anna’s ordeal. Four separate trips through a hell he never wanted to think about again. Four near heart-attacks upon waking.

Four times he felt like he needed to get the fuck out of a suite he had no business being in and never see Anna again.

And then her presence comforted him so deeply that he was lulled back into sleep, even when the back of his mind was screaming at him that he did not belong, that him and Anna would never have any sort of future he could handle, that he was destined to die a sad and lonely man.

The next thing he knew he was pulled from his sleep the last time by Anna, yawning and hugging him tightly as she changed her position, dragging a smooth calf up his legs and settling it between them.

“How did you sleep?”

He could feel her lips move against his skin on his pec as she asked. His first instinct was to lie, only he would never do that to her. Her life had been filled with people who withheld things and lied, and that was not what he was going to do.

But he could not call forth the words to explain.

Anna moved, lifting up onto her elbow and looking down at him as his eyes followed hers, looking unassuming and concerned at the same time.

“Not well?”

His lips refused to open. All he could do was shake his head, and her look of dismay, the way her body sagged with sadness, nearly killed him. 

“Is it this place? We can find somewhere else! I just thought that-”

“It’s not the hotel, Anna.” His voice creaked.

“Then… what? Is it… is it me?”

Kristoff shook his head and sighed as he sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He had his back to her now but he would feel her eyes bore into the back of his skull. 

“Nightmares,” he whispered, offering her the truth while he struggled with it himself.

Anna was silent for a while before the bed shifted under him and she sat at his side, dragging the sheet with her and wrapping it around herself. 

“Let me guess, you don’t have nightmares very often, do you?”

Kristoff shook his head, staring straight ahead with unfocused eyes. It surprised him actually, that she seemed to know that.

“Was it about what happened? Or… about what will happen?”

“I… don’t know. I don’t really remember what they were about. Just…” He sighed and put his face in his hands, trying to scrub away the exhaustion that remained. “I’m sorry, Anna. I am going to have to ruin the day you have planned.”

“What do you mean?”

Kristoff ignored her and got up, walking to where his filthy jeans lay discarded on the floor beside the bathroom door. He slipped them on under the weight of Anna’s stare and headed for the closet to get his coat.

“W… where are you going?”

He paused with one arm in the sleeve of his jacket, telling himself to be firm, to be strong, then he finally looked at her and all that resolve left him to see the fear in her eyes. Dammit, he could not just walk away from this. From her. Too many things within him had changed.

“I have some things I need to do.”

There. He could offer her that at the very least and let her decide how to take it.

Anna stood, sheet falling at her feet to reveal her nakedness. “I am going with you.”

Kristoff stared into her eyes, unable to stop the gentle smile that curved his lips. 


	20. Chapter 20

They took a cab to where Kristoff had left his car and were now driving all the way back across the city to his apartment after stopping at a diner to grab a cup of strong coffee. Anna poured as much cream and sugar into hers as the room left in the cup would allow before snapping the lid into place.

Kristoff hadn’t said very much and Anna tried very hard not to take it personally. The way he had been when they woke, the look in his eyes… it frightened her despite his soft smile before they left the hotel. She could still see a part inside of him that remained uncertain.

Anna, on the other hand, was never more certain of anything in her life; her future lies with Kristoff in it.

He parked a block away and they walked side by side to Kristoff’s apartment. Anna wanted to reach out and hold his hand, but his hands were stuffed into the pockets of his jacket. She didn’t want to say he was being a bit standoffish; there was no cruelty in his actions, but he was undeniably distant.

They climbed the stairs and Kristoff pulled out his keys as they navigated the hall. He stood back to let Anna enter and left the door resting against the jam as he went to his bedroom. Anna followed, even though she wasn’t invited. She knew without him saying so that they were just there to get clothes and she still had her bag in there and would need them in the days to come.

She watched him as he took off his jacket, threw it on the bed, and stripped naked. Anna grabbed her bag to give him some privacy. He hadn’t asked for any, but then again, it seemed rude to just stand there and ogle him.

As soon as she rounded the corner into his living room, Anna let out a scream and dropped her bag, startled by the person who was standing there.

Kristoff was beside her in an instant. 

“Anna! Are you-”

The elderly woman looked at Kristoff with recognition and started talking to him. Well, at lease Anna thought it was talking. There were very few words she could recognize. It wasn’t a foreign language, but rather as if she was so drunk that she couldn’t speak properly.

Kristoff held up his hands, “Alright, alright, Mrs. Jacobs, just let me finish getting dressed please. I’ll be over in a minute.”

The old woman wandered back towards the open door without a word. Anna turned to see that Kristoff was shirtless and hadn’t even had time to do up his jeans. The button was open and the fly was down, revealing the top of his boxer briefs. When she looked up, she was shocked to see fear in his eyes.

“Fuck… I thought…”

He was whispering and Anna realized that he was shaking. Only then it dawned on her. There was a loose end out there still, a rogue detective by the name of Duke Morton. It had crossed Anna’s mind as Cliff drove them away from the scene that he was still out there, although she assumed that he was miles away by now with how quickly he had run away from the scene. Perhaps she should have considered that me might want some sort of revenge. Clearly that was what Kristoff had assumed…

Then again, there were a lot of other bad players in the whole saga wasn’t there.

“Kristoff, do we… have to be afraid of them coming after us? Dan’s partner or… or the,” she swallowed, “the mob?”

He let out a deep sign and grabbed her hand, leading her over to the couch and sat sideways to face her.

“No, I don’t… I just… well, I can’t lie, it is a possibility even though I think it’s unlikely.”

“But… won’t there be a trail? Will we have to testify? What if… what if they, I don’t know, put out a hit or something, and we have to live in witness protection or-”

Kristoff gave her a weak smile. “I think you’ve seen too many cop movies.”

That gave her a slight sense of ease and she offered him a small smile in return. “None, actually, but I admit I did read a noir fiction or two after my sister first suggested that I should look for a private investigator.”

Kristoff huffed a tiny laugh. “Well my life could probably be in one of those novels, the justice system works a little differently in real life.”

“But we will have to testify at trail though, won’t we?”

He shook his head. “He’ll take a plea deal for rolling over on his mob buddies. If they will go after anyone, it’s going to be him when their laundering operation is shut down and their boys are arrested.”

“A… a plea deal? What is that?”

“It means he’ll plead guilty and provide the cops with all the information they need to make the mob arrests in exchange for a shorter sentence.”

“Does that mean he could be out in… in a year or something like that?”

“No, no, not with the list of charges he is facing. It just means that instead of life without parole he might be eligible to get out after twenty-five or thirty years.”

Anna was getting worked up now, thinking about things she probably should have considered already.

“What about bail? What if he makes bail and-”

“Commissioner Brooks would never allow that to happen. Plus any lawyer with a half a brain would look at all the evidence against Hans and strongly suggest that he make a plea deal before the arraignment hearing. After that, he tells them everything they want to know to take a lesser sentence on his crimes.”

“Okay, that’s a relief… I guess. But Kristoff, you were scared, scared that someone was here to cause us harm and I worry that-”

“Anna, I am sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you, I just… I… my mind is a mess right now and I just assumed the worse. I should have known it was my neighbour. She is always walking in here the second I have my door open.”

Anna nodded and let out a deep sigh. Kristoff leaned over and pulled her into his arms, caressing her back. She could not shake the unease, but being in his arms helped her calm her nerves. She really wanted to move past all this bullshit and enjoy being with him.

“So,” she started, pulling out of his arms and looking at him. “You’re neighbour… she’s…”

“She had a really severe stroke a couple years back.”

“And you can understand her?”

He nodded his head from side to side. “Mostly. Sometimes I’m at a loss, but she was asking me to come over to her place. I help her out with things from time to time, you know, leaky tap or boxes she needs moved or something. She has no one, except her cats.”

“That’s sad. And very sweet of you to be so kind.”

Kristoff shrugged and took to his feet. “Just try not to wrinkle your nose too much. Her place kind of smells like a litter box.”

Anna cringed inwardly but nodded. She followed Kristoff into the hall and he pushed open the apartment door on the other side of the hall that stood ajar. He was right, her place did smell like a litter box, one that desperately needed a change, but Anna was surprised that the space was very tidy even if it was crawling with felines. Anna counted eight right off the bat and wondered if there were more lurking where she could not see.

She stayed behind Kristoff, slipping her hand into his. He looked quickly over his shoulder at her with a smile as they followed Mrs. Jacobs as she indicated, down her hallway and into a bedroom.

Anna bumped into Kristoff’s back when he suddenly stopped.

“Sven?”

Anna’s mouth popped open and her eyes went wide as she looked around Kristoff’s arm to see the little brown tabby cat laying on a made bed with a cast on his back leg.

Kristoff surged forward and grabbed the cat, being gentle as he hauled the little animal into his arms and cradled him. 

“Sven, I am so happy to see you. I thought I’d lost you.”

To see Kristoff coo at the cat while his eyes became glassy, Anna’s heart melted and she nearly burst into tears.

Kristoff’s neighbour started rambling at him but Anna could not tear her eyes away from his face as she reached forward blindly to give Sven a good scratch. The already purring cat, began to purr even louder.

~ ~ ~

He still could not believe that Mrs. Jacobs had found him. And not only that, she had taken it upon herself to get him to the vet so that his leg could be casted. It was lucky that it was only a fracture and not a break.

He gave his neighbour all the money his Dad had given him to cover the cost of the vet bill and assured her he would get the rest as soon as he was able, even though she insisted that it was not an issue with her at all. Still, he knew she was on a fixed income and did not want her to be inconvenienced by taking care of his feline friend.

They were back in his apartment now, sitting on his couch with Sven between them. He was eating out of a little tin of wet cat food that Kristoff usually only gave Sven as a treat. The cat could now have one for every meal for the rest of his days, Kristoff was so happy that he was alive.

All this relief and his mind was a whirlwind of indecision. There were so many things he needed to do, places to stop and people to see, and he knew that Anna was going to want to go back to the Waldorf. Only now he couldn’t bare the thought of leaving Sven alone in the apartment with an injury and probably some leftover trauma from the ordeal. 

Then again, he himself didn’t really want to stay in the apartment, or rather, didn’t want to force Anna to stay here.

Which left only one option and he wasn’t sure if he was ready to face it with Anna in tow. He loved her, quite a lot, but things between them, all their unspoken feelings, were still so new, not to mention surrounded by all a traumatic ordeal that was still very fresh. There was a lot they would have to face and things that would need to change if they were to have any sort of future.

“Do you want to stay here instead, Kristoff? I understand if you would, now that you have Sven back.”

Kristoff let out a small chuckle and looked into her understanding eyes. Damn she was just so intuitive. And intelligent. And heartbreakingly beautiful…

_Fuck it._ If he was going to do something he hadn’t done in fourteen years, he wanted her to be there with him. As long as she was up for it.

“Anna… I… I think I want to go home.”

“But you are…” Her eyes widened with understanding. “Oh, I see. Yes, sure Kristoff. That would be a good idea. Do you… want me to come? Or maybe I shouldn’t? I don’t want to intrude if-”

“I do,” he said, reaching over Sven to grab her hands. “I do want you to come with me. But Anna, I… there is a lot of emotion involved in this. For me and my parents. My Ma… she…”

Anna gave his fingers a squeeze. “I get it. Believe me, I understand.”

Kristoff nodded. “Thank you.”

*****

Sven mewed from the cat carrier but not nearly as loud as he would have where he not perched on Anna’s lap. This was definitely throwing a wrench into the order he was going to do things, but he could not feel annoyed about it for the simple reason that Sven was alive and back in his life. He had truly thought that he would never see his little friend again.

They pulled up to the house in Queens and Kristoff let out a sigh, mentally preparing himself for what he was about to face. He had called his Pop to give him the news so that he could let his mother know that he was coming home and that he was not alone.

He told Anna to bring her bag and packed himself one for the next few days. There was no way he was getting out of there without staying the night, which was fine, but eventually Kristoff wanted to make it back to the Waldorf and give Anna the day he promised her.

After all, it really was his idea of heaven on Earth. Or rather, a slice of it.

Sven would be more than fine at his parents place for the next while. The cat had never met his parents, but Bulda had an affinity with all living creatures. He was sure the feline would love her as he had immediately loved Anna.

And he did.

After a very tearful greeting, mostly from his Mother and Anna – although he and his Pop had not been afraid to shed their tears either – they settled into conversation as easily as he had just been over for dinner the week before instead of fourteen years prior.

It felt great to be home. So much better than it did to lay eyes on his Dad when he met them in the city the day before. There was not much of a reunion then with what they still had to face, but now with it all behind them, with room to breath and nerves that weren’t wound up, Kristoff marvelled in the moment of joy to be home again.

And Anna… She was the light and the comfort at his side that made him appreciate it even more. His mother loved her of course, and the two clicked immediately, talking about her harrowing ordeal and how grateful and proud they were of Kristoff for helping her out of it. They both agreed, he was a man of intelligence and cunning to go along with his kindness and compassion.

He blushed and waved off their praise, but damn if it didn’t make him feel like a million bucks.

After dinner was eaten and a dessert no one really had room in their stomachs for was finished, Kristoff could not hold back his exhaustion anymore. Through several yawns he bid his parents goodnight and took Anna up to the bedroom he stayed in as a child.

His Ma assured him she changed the sheets. There were two teenagers and a twenty-year-old left in the house; Cliff and Bulda’s last adopted children since they were getting on in their years. None of them were there of course, they had better things to do that meet one of their ‘siblings’ for the first time. Kristoff understood that and actually welcomed being able to have this time with just his parents. He knew he would meet them eventually now that he aimed to see his parents every week for his foreseeable future.

Then again, what if Anna wanted him to move away with her? What if her idea of their future together consisted of living in her native country in… a castle or a palace or something? As much as he loved her, and as much as he tried to, he simply could not picture himself in that life. Ever.

He would try whatever came long though. He promised himself that he would. With that thought and nothing else, he slipped into bed with Anna, sighing with contentment when she curled against his side. 

~ ~ ~

The glow from the streetlights filtering in through the light curtains allowed Anna to observe the cuts on Kristoff’s neck and cheek as she lay beside him. He was sleeping, or so she thought, until she reached out to gently trace a finger along the red raised skin of the injury on his neck and his eyes opened.

He looked over at her. “Can’t sleep?”

Anna shook her head.

“What’s bothering you?”

“Nothing I can pinpoint, if that makes sense.”

Kristoff rolled over to face her, lifting his head to prop it up on the fist of his folded arm. “I know that feeling.”

“What do you do when you have that feeling?”

He smiled sadly. “Usually lay awake in bed all night.” 

Anna frowned and let out a sigh, unsure how to navigate this new territory with Kristoff. There were so many things she wanted to say to him, and yet this felt like the wrong time to be doing it. He still had things he said he needed to do, and while Anna had no idea what they were, she knew they were important to him.

“Want to talk about anything?”

That made her smile. “Actaully, not really. I really do just want to sleep.”

“Can I hold you, Anna? Would that help?”

She sighed out a ‘yes’ and rolled away from him. He moved with her and pressed himself against her back and curled his arm around her, unafraid to put his hand firmly against her breast and pull her tightly against him.

She snuggled into him, relishing in the warmth of his body.

“Watch it with that wiggling, Anna,” he chuckled. “You’re going to get me all hot and bothered if you keep doing it.”

She could not help but giggle, relieved that the tension between them had abated. “Okay, I’m done. Just getting comfy.”

“Are you? Comfy?”

“Very.”

“Good.” He kissed the back of her head. “Goodnight, Anna.”

“Goodnight, Kristoff. I hope you have sweet dreams.”

“You too,” he sighed.

Anna shut her eyes and was being pulled into sleep in no time, comforted by the fact that Kristoff got there before her.


	21. Chapter 21

“Please, Kristoff. Let me do this. I owe you so much more.”

“Anna… I… I could never actually take payment from you after what-”

“Listen. You saved my life. You may think differently but my mind is made up. All you sacrificed for me, I want to help you do this. After all, without their help, who knows where we would be right now.”

Kristoff reluctantly nodded. He supposed he should have held back what his plans for the money were, but that would fall in line with lying and keeping things from her which he was not willing to do. Not only that, his bank account only had ninety-eight dollars and thirty-six cents left in it. He pulled out everything in his savings, but it was not near enough for what he had in mind.

“Good. It’s settled. Wait here and I will be right back.”

Kristoff plopped into one of the chairs that lined the windows of the bank and tried to flex out some of the tension he felt by squeezing his hands into fists and then releasing them over and over.

It had been a weird and frightening morning to say the least. 

First was waking and having no idea where he was. That had never happened to him before. He had a mini panic attack until it quickly came back to him. Perhaps it was being in his old room that did it. Or maybe it was his unease. Either way, he realized he had not dreamt, had not even moved a single inch since succumbing to sleep wrapped around Anna.

And then he had another moment of panic when he realized that he never, ever wanted to wake up without this, without _her_ – warm and so fucking wonderful that it actually made his heart ache – again.

He was thrown for his second and more distressing loop during breakfast when his Ma dragged out pictures of him from when he was first adopted. Anna had fawned and awed and it stirred something inside of Kristoff that he didn’t even know was there. Looking at her eyes, her soft and longing expression as she gazed upon the images of him being a child, and Kristoff’s paternal instinct reared it’s very large and very hard to ignore head.

It had been a part of his childhood dream along with wearing a badge; a wife, kids, family dog, white-picket fence and all that bullshit. Then he went to jail and that part of him died.

Or so he thought.

It was certainly alive and well now, looking at Anna and imagining what their child might look like.

Then everyone teased him for being miles away and asked him what he was thinking about. He was unable to admit it then with the cold feeling of fear in his veins. There was _no way_ he would make a good father. There was a part of him that clearly wanted it, but he could _not_ let that happen. Not after what he had been through. That was an area he was surely destined to fail.

It was incredibly ignorant on his part not to consider a future with Anna that wouldn’t involve kids. Fuck, her damn charity catered after them and it did not take a PI to see that she wanted them someday. Well, maybe it did take a PI, but one that was a lot smarter than him.

He felt uneasy and more conflicted now than ever despite how much he had changed since he met her.

And here he was, sitting and letting her pull out money for him, and he was absolutely positive she was going to offer him far more than he had been needing. The scarier part of that, was that he would take it.

What the fuck had he gotten himself into?

*****

He tracked Earl down without much effort. The beggar didn’t travel very far from the corner where he slept very often. Anna waited in the car while Kristoff went to talk to him. He parked close enough that he could keep an eye on her to make sure she was safe. 

His worry and indecision still twisted at his stomach, but he did his best to push it from his mind for the time being. That was a bridge he was not looking forward to coming to because there was no way he could cross it. Being a Dad was not in his cards. Not anymore.

“Kristoff,” The older man gave him a brown-toothed grin as he approached. “Glad to see you alive and well.”

“Thank you, Earl. You really saved my skin the other day. I owe you big time.”

“Ah,” Earl waved his hand. “Just slip me an extra twenty next time you need a favour.”

Kristoff repressed a sigh. There might not be a next time for him needing Earls help. The path ahead seemed so cloudy he absolutely had no idea where he would end up in the future.

“Listen, I am here to offer you my deepest gratitude and a way for you to get your life back on track.”

Earl straightened from the garbage bin he had been going through and looked at Kristoff with a blank expression.

“An apartment, completely paid off, and a wad of cash to get you started. Not to mention a job.”

The beggar turned his sad eyes to the ground. “You know how I feel about that, Kristoff. If I go back there is no way I can stay clean.”

“Yes, you can. There are AA meetings and support groups all over the city. I will find you a sponsor myself.”

Earl had confided in him a long time ago that his high stress job had drove him to drink. He was so far down in the bottle that he stopped showing up for work and the bank quickly repossessed his brownstone when he was fired. After that it was a life on the streets trying to get clean. He managed, but that was only after a violent altercation with a strung-out crackhead nearly landed Earl in the morgue. He recovered in the hospital and vowed to keep his life sober after that even if he still never had a home. Kristoff had met him a year after that incident and he had kept his promise to himself. Life on the streets to him was hard, but not as hard as the shoulder of responsibility.

Earl shook his head and went to shuffle away.

“Please, Earl. Just give it a chance. If you think you can’t handle it, just bail. No worries. Just a week, okay? Try it for a week. Try having a bed to sleep in and a shower and a refrigerator with food in it. It’s all there waiting for you.”

“Why?” The older man had tears forming in his eyes. “Why do you want to do this for me?”

“Because,” Kristoff said with a smile. “You are my friend. Ever since you saved my ass when I was fresh out of jail and living in my car, I’ve considered you my friend. I want to do this for you. I… I had been holding on to something I thought I needed, but I don’t. As long as a six-year-old murder that has long since been cleaned up doesn’t bother you, it’s all yours.”

Earl regarded him for a long time before he spoke, and it was certainly not what Kristoff expected him to say.

“Was that the reason you hit rock bottom?”

Kristoff could only nod.

“I thought you were going to die, you know.”

Those memories still hurt, even though he had healed more from them in the last few weeks than he had in the past six years. “Honestly, so did I. I thought I would never move on, but guess what, I tried, and I succeeded. My future now,” he swallowed before the lie, still unable to envision it, “is very bright.”

“I’m glad to hear that, Kristoff.”

“You’ll give it a try then?”

Earl pursed his lips. “What’s the job?”

“Bookkeeping. You used to be a Wall Street accountant, right?” Earl nodded. “Well definitely less work than that. And it’s for a Children’s Charity. Easy hours, good pay, and very low stress.”

“I do have a soft spot for kids,” Earl said.

_Me too_.

Kristoff’s eyes went wide as that thought spoke loudly in his mind and he tried to cover up the fact that he had shocked himself by looking enthused for Earl. “So you’ll give it a chance?”

Earl stared into his eyes for a moment before he smiled and nodded. “Sure. For you, old friend.”

Kristoff smiled back while his heart went a mile a minute in his chest.

~ ~ ~

He looked shaken after he got in the car and started to drive away. Anna wanted to ask what had happened, but she was suddenly very wary even though it looked like the men hugged and parted on good terms.

“He… is, um, we will meet him over there tomorrow. I gave him the address. We can, go in the morning and set the rest of the things up… that is… as long as you still want t-”

“Of course I do, Kristoff,” Anna placed a hand on his shoulder. “I’m with you all the way.”

He didn’t look over at that as Anna had expected. He swallowed hard, his Adams apple bobbing up and down his throat as his eyes remained pointed out the windshield. This was all starting to unravel beneath her very eyes. She had been so certain, and then something changed this morning that she could not put her finger on. Something switched off in him and Anna had no idea how to turn it back on. It made her want to cry. She was certainly going to ask him about it, but she was scared at what his answer might be. 

Anna put a fake smile on her face. “So where now?”

He looked at his watch then back at the road. “Funeral home is still open. We’ll go there and then make one more stop before we head back to the hotel.”

That at least was a comfort. He still wanted to go back to the lavish hotel with her and that _had_ to mean something.

For now, she would just take things as they came, and if the time came to fight for them to stay together, she would.

~ ~ ~

“No one? Not a single person.”

“I am sorry, Mr. Bjorgman. She had no family.”

Kristoff hung his head with the pain of emotion pressing on the backs of his eyes. Agnes had been his secretary for three entire years and he never knew she had no family. It also hurt and surprised him to realize that she had no friends. She was slotted to be cremated as an unclaimed dead person in two days time.

He knew barely anything about her, but he knew she did not want that. It had come up one day during one of their more morbid conversations, and she had mentioned to him that she wanted to be buried on a hill facing the East. Sunrise was always her favourite and she supposed that would be as good a place to lie for eternity as any. Kristoff had told her at the time he didn’t give a shit what happened to his dead body. Funny how even that had changed now. He would figure out what he wanted in time, but he did not want to go out as just another unclaimed body.

Nonetheless, the conversation with her had stuck with him, so he discussed options and went through arranging a proper funeral for Agnes. It was basically the cheapest one available with a barely sloped plot facing the east, but it was still better than doing something she didn’t want. None of this was his money after all. Not that Anna was hurting for it, but it was not his to spend as recklessly as he saw fit.

And he was taking the money because it was the right thing to do for the people who had helped them and lost their lives along the way. After this was over, he would certainly take issue with it, but not until then.

He thought briefly to look into Joanne and her situation to see if there was any way he could help her family, but as much as he believed that she had probably also been taken advantage of in some capacity, Hans would have absolutely had her killed as soon as him and Anna were wed. Her death was inevitable as soon as she slipped into that bastard’s bed, and that held no weight on his and Anna’s shoulders.

As far as the last suspected death, Kristoff had called in to check on Dan’s condition in the morning and the prognosis did not look good. They were still waiting to see if he was strong enough to pull out of the extensive emergency surgery. He hoped the old man would make it. Kristoff knew he had a wife he adored, and it would be heartbreaking for her to have to lose him since they were never able to have the kids they had once so desperately wanted.

In all likelihood, his wife was the reason Dan went temporarily insane. While he didn’t believe it had anything to do with her ‘sister who was going through a hard time’, it was definitely something. Thinking now about Anna, he had to wonder if he would do the same, whatever the reason behind it was.

He hoped that he would get the chance to find out.

“Well, that about wraps it up, Mr. Bjorgman. The graveside service will be on Saturday at three p.m.”

He blinked himself back to reality. It was astonishing how much he had been zoning out since dealing with Hans. Kristoff stood, Anna doing the same at his side, and he offered his hand to the funeral director.

“Thank you.”

The man shook it. “More like thank you, sir. Unclaimed bodies always make me a little sad.”

*****

He was exhausted but they had one more stop before the hotel.

It was stupid he couldn’t commit the address to memory, and more painstaking still that he had to drive all the way back to his office to find the address in her personnel file. At the very least, she had lived only three blocks away.

Kristoff drove there despite the proximity and the fact that he still had to park a block away. Anna had his hand in a death grip as they navigated the streets of Hells Kitchen at night to get to Agnes’s apartment. It took nothing for them to enter the small run-down building and start knocking on doors of the same floor that his secretary had lived to see if they knew her.

There were only two doors left when they found what Kristoff had been looking for.

After explaining they knew Agnes, they were both greeted with a warm hug and immediate offer to come inside. Neither one of them could resist the matronly figure who introduced herself as Safiya as they stepped into her apartment. Despite the delicious smell of whatever food the woman was cooking, Kristoff and Anna had to decline the offer to stay for a meal with the news they were about to bring. 

In the living room he told her that Agnes had been killed. The older woman took it with so much sorrow that he did not have to look at Anna to know she was trying not to cry. He could feel it too. 

“She was such a sweetheart to my babies, always looking after them when I had to work my second job. Then they all grew up and we didn’t see each other all that much. I… I will miss her.”

“There’s a funeral service. Saturday, at three, if you can make it.”

Safiya wiped the tears from under her eyes and looked at Kristoff with resolve. “Sir, I will be there. And all of my children too.”

“Thank you, Safiya. I appreciate that.”

“Did you know her well then? I know she had no family.”

He licked his dry lips. “Not very well, sadly. She worked for me for a little while.”

Safiya gave him a knowing nod. “She was a very private person, wasn’t she? Felt like she enjoyed being alone.” Kristoff could only nod. “Well, I sure do appreciate you telling me about the service. You can count on us bein’ there.”

They all stood.

“Thank you, Safiya.”

“And thank you for the warm welcome,” Anna added.

Kristoff looked down at her with a thankful smile.

They parted with a hug each and made their way quietly down the hall and out of the building and all the way back to where Kristoff’s car was parked. He drove off without a word, mind as troubled as ever and not knowing what he could say or do to make Anna feel better because he knew damn-well she was distraught with his behaviour.

He was coming into his true self and she seemed to be as nervous about it as he was.

~ ~ ~

There was no talking. He stripped to his boxers, crawled into bed and then gestured for her to join him.

The fact that he slipped between the sheets in his underwear told her that he had no plans to be intimate. She knew he was still fighting with his tiredness, but she selfishly wanted him to make love to her despite that. She ached to feel him inside of her again.

This was so much different than what she had in mind. They were supposed to be eating and drinking whatever they wanted and lounging in bed and having tons of sex and talking and just… not _this._ Not having nightmares and struggling to right what had been wronged and that fucking look in his eyes! 

He was looking at her expectantly, staring right back into her eyes as her mind raged. As upset as she was however, she could not bring herself to look past all the things that he had done for her, the biggest of which was saving her life. But oh it was so much more than that. It was the fact that he had apparently quit smoking cold turkey because he knew she hated it, it was his willingness to return to this lavish hotel room, it was the simple fact that he was letting her tag along on these personal errands of his. It was in his manner and his tired smile and the way that despite the turmoil behind his eyes there was still a sense of awe and respect every time he looked at her.

It was everything

Anna stripped to her panties and joined him.

As soon as she was in the bed, he was moving towards her across the expansive mattress. No sooner had she laid down than he curled himself around her, clinging to her like he had done back in that hotel in Yonkers. That moment, after they had both found their release in that fevered and passionate encounter, had meant more to her than anything else in the world. It was that firm hold that told her what was truly in his heart. 

And he did not disappoint her in it now.

“Anna,” he whispered, “I’m in love with you.”

She immediately started to cry. “I’m in love with you, too,” she managed, mouth twisted in a grimace, trying not to start full on sobbing at finally hearing the words.

“I wanted it to be different, to tell you some other way, but I realize it doesn’t matter in the end. I love you, Anna. No matter what happens… I love you.”

Despite the firm grip around her, Anna rolled over to face him. 

“I love you too, Kristoff. No matter what. Whatever happens, we can face it together.”

“I know,” he said, his eyes impossibly sad, “and I promise you I will try.”

Anna nodded and kissed him, unable to think about the reasons that would make his effort to try a fail. 

She fell asleep with her forehead pressed against his.

~ ~ ~

Kristoff waited until she was long asleep before he carefully untangled himself from her. He did not want her to wake up for what he was about to do. 

After dressing quickly, he left the room, taking the elevator down and walking through the lobby to the streets that beckoned him. It was surreal now, the way the city felt around him.

He hadn’t noticed it before. It had a heartbeat. Before it was all chaos, sirens, honking horns and millions of people. Now he saw there was a rhythm to it. A dance, a tango, that he was sure was unique to no other place in the entire world.

He approached the first payphone he found and dialed a number.

“Hello?”

His voice sounded so tired. Kristoff felt like shit for calling him in the middle of the night, but if anyone would understand, it would be him.

“Hi Dad.”

“Son? What’s wrong? Is everything okay?”

“Yeah Pop, sorry. It is. I just… I had a question.”

“Anything, son. You know that. Always.”

Kristoff took a deep breath, letting out slowly before speaking.

“Do you think that… I would make a good father?”


	22. Chapter 22

The morning was much different for Kristoff. He was exhausted again, having spent most of the night staring at the ceiling deep in thought. It had taken a long time, but he had finally made some decisions about what was happening before he found sleep. He had woken with a deep sense of comfort with finally putting his mind at ease.

That sense of peace enveloped him. And wasn’t that what he had really wanted his whole life? His father’s answer to his late-night question had gone a long way in helping him come to terms with everything.

_“Are you kidding me? Of course you would make a great Dad. I knew that about you the moment I first laid my eyes on you, even back then. Look at how much you watched out for your younger siblings and helped them along the way. You have it in you, son. No question.”_

It made him emotional as he walked back to the hotel. After closing the door as quietly as he could, he snuck to the bed and crawled in to hug the love of his life. She questioned him what was going on in a slurred and sleepy speech. He did lie then, but only because in the end it wouldn’t matter. 

_‘Just had to pee. Go back to sleep, baby.’_

She mumbled ‘I love you’ and he responded in kind and then began coming to terms with things in his mind.

Now that he was awake, despite wanting to give her the day he promised, despite his newfound resolve, his mind would not rest until he completed the tasks he felt he had to do. Only then could he truly enjoy his idea of Heaven on Earth.

They found a quick breakfast at a bagel street a couple blocks from the hotel and then hit up a department store to grab a few new clothing items and linens for Kristoff’s friend. Afterwards they stopped at a Bodega to get groceries and toiletries for the man. Kristoff would have liked to get more furniture for the place, but since it was to be Earls, if he wanted to upgrade or add anything, he could do so with the money they were going to give him.

Earl was standing on the street near the front door of the building when they pulled up. It appeared to Kristoff like he had tried to clean up as much as possible. Gone was the tattered heavy coat he always wore and he had his hair as combed and tidy as the filth would allow.

Kristoff approached him with Anna right behind.

“Good morning, Earl.”

“Morning, Kristoff. I… I still don’t really know what to say, or how to thank you properly for-”

Kristoff held up his hand. “Trust me, you are the one doing me the favour. You promise you’re okay that some bad things have happened in the place though, right?”

Earl nodded. “I’ve surly slept on the street in a place someone has lost their lives in my years. Not to mention seeing a lot of my friends succumb to whatever they were hooked on. It doesn’t bother me.”

“Good,” Kristoff smiled. “Help us grab some things from the car and come on up and look at your new home.”

~ ~ ~

Anna was fucking relieved. Kristoff wasn’t overly vocal yet about what was going on in his mind, but his eyes were different when she woke with him. 

They were clear and sure for the first time since that very first day she walked into his office.

It was amazing how much more beautiful they were without the tornado behind them. And she knew it wasn’t just because they had told each other they loved one another. Whatever she was worried had switched off in him no longer seemed to matter, or perhaps, it had switched back on. Either way, she could see it in the way he smiled at her.

It was great to help Earl settle into his new place. Anna had never been so happy to give someone some money. Kristoff had wanted to give him a thousand dollars of his own, but Anna was happy to help and insisted he keep his money. She had more than enough to share so she had given Earl five-grand. That way he could make his apartment his own and have a good head start on the utility payments. Not only that, he would be starting work taking over the bookkeeping of her charity the following Monday and would have a steady paycheck as long as he kept showing up for work.

She was relieved to hear the night before that Cliff said it was easier to trace the link between Hans and the money laundering operation than he thought. It only took a little bit of studying the books to pinpoint those interactions. Kristoff’s Dad had called the commissioner and offered up the evidence. Although he was unable to update Cliff on what was happening with their side of the case, he strongly hinted that they were in the middle of hammering out a plea deal with the bastard. At least now she knew which parts of the books were legitimate. 

Before they left, Kristoff mentioned again that he would find Earl a sponsor, only to be surprised that he already had. Apparently after meeting with him yesterday, Earl had found himself an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting and explained his predicament to have the group leader offer his hand to help. He assured Earl that with his co-operation he would remain clean and sober.

What that loose end tied, they bid Earl a good day and went onto their next task, one that made Anna rather nervous.

~ ~ ~

It was about two in the afternoon by the time they got to the hospital.

Despite suggesting that Anna could just wait in the hall, she insisted on coming in with him. It soothed his soul that she was so insistent on being with him through every step of this even though he was sure she harboured some resentment to the man for what he did.

Dan was unconscious, looking frail and weak, hooked up to all sorts of wires and machines. A woman his age sat beside the bed with his hand clasped between hers. One look at her appearance and Kristoff finally understood the detective’s motivation for dirty money. 

She looked their way at their entrance and regarded them closely before eyeing Kristoff up and down and offering a small smile. She stood, running a hand over the extremely short hair on her head in a self-conscious way before approaching them.

“You must be Kristoff. Dan talked about you. Always referred to you as _the big blond kid._ ”

Kristoff smiled softly and offered his hand. “Pleasure to finally meet you Mrs. Caldwell.”

She shook it. “Call me Eleanor, please.”

He nodded. “How is he doing?”

The older woman grimaced. “He’s hanging on. It’s still touch and go, but he’s a fighter. Always has been.”

Kristoff dipped his head. “He most certainly is.”

“It’s nice of you to stop by to check on him. I’m sorry I an unable to offer you better news.”

He gave her a gentle smile. “We can’t stick around, but I wanted to see how he was. I’ll be back tomorrow to check on him if that’s okay with you.”

“Oh, yes, of course.”

“Thank you Mrs. Cal-”

“Can I ask you something, Kristoff?” He stiffened, knowing exactly where she was going with this. “Was Dan in any sort of… trouble?”

Should he lie? No, probably not, but this was by no means his story to have to explain.

“Why do you ask?”

“There are a lot of cops coming by. The ones who come in to check on him I recognize, but there seems to be an awful lot of ones I’ve never seen before pacing the hallway outside the door from time to time. I just wonder with him being shot and all if there was a reason…” Her voice tapered off with a weak shrug of her shoulders telling him she really did not know what else to say.

“I actually have no idea, Mrs. Caldwell.” It was the truth at least, even though he had a feeling that Commissioner Brooks was too straight of a cop to let Dan’s crimes slide. “I hope its nothing. Maybe just keeping an eye on a fallen comrade.”

Eleanor nodded but he could see that she didn’t believe that.

*****

“Hey Ma, how’s Sven?”

They were back at the hotel. The next day was going to be an early morning and Kristoff still felt the weight of exhaustion on his bones. All he wanted was to eat and go to bed.

“Oh he’s doing just fine, sweetheart. He’s such a good little kitty and boy does he ever love to purr.”

Kristoff could not help but chuckle softly at that. He might have wished again that he’d taken note of the way the cat acted around Betty to save him a lot of heartache, but the memory of her was fading more and more with each passing day.

“That’s great, Ma. And thanks for looking after him for a while.”

“My pleasure.”

“Listen, is Dad there?”

“He is. Just got in. He had a meeting with Commissioner Brooks about eliminating corruption from the force. Here, here, let him tell you.” 

The phone was jostled and his Dad’s voice came through the receiver. 

“Hi Son, how you holding up?”

There was knowing in his voice that comforted him. “Pretty good. Just running around and tying up loose ends.”

“Ah those damn loose ends. Every time you finish one another two seem to pop up.”

“Isn’t that the truth,” Kristoff sighed. “So you and the Commissioner are on a head hunt for the dirty ones?”

“We sure are. I’m a bit rusty in this whole business, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I enjoyed it.”

“You’ll be careful though? Make sure you’re more on the paper end of this one, right?”

“What are you trying to say, son? That I’m getting on in my years?”

“Your words, Dad.”

He chuckled. “Actually, your Mothers, and don’t worry, I am being extra careful to stay out of harms way.”

“That’s good to hear, Dad.” Kristoff cleared his throat. “Listen, who do you know in the force that I could use with a hand on something? It’s nothing big, just trying to get some help offering some compensation for stolen properly, but it’ll have to be someone trustful and discreet.”

“I know _exactly_ who can help you with that. He’s retired but he has a lot of friends in the force who won’t mind giving him a hand on something like that. His name is Destin Mattias.”

“How can I get in touch with him?”

“Leave that to me. I’ll set up a meet and get back to you. You going to be there all evening?”

“Yeah, but I’ll be asleep in a few hours.”

“I’ll get back to you in one.”

Kristoff let out a sigh of relief. “Thanks Pop.”

*****

Anna was unpacking their clothes into the dresser and closet when he went into the bedroom. He laid on the bed with a groan to watch her. Her let her finish in silence, never taking his eyes off of her and feeling a tingle throughout his whole body every time she glanced at him with that sweet smile of hers.

When she was finished, she joined him by crawling beside where he lay and folding her legs under her, looking down with a soft and loving expression. The difference in her was immediately evident as soon as he looked at her when they woke. All day she was smiling at him, clearly seeing the fact that he had made his mind up about things. 

Not that it still wouldn’t end in disaster because now was when the hard part of that decision would come into play.

“I think we need to talk, Anna.”

Her smile faltered. “I think you’re right.”

He hated to see her looking so frightened again, like she was walking on eggshells around him for fear he was just going to up and bolt out the door. Not that it hadn’t crossed his mind, but he needed her to understand that ability was no longer within him.

Kristoff sat up and faced her, crossing his legs the way she did and scooting forward until her knees pressing into his folded shins.

“My future…” he started and then shook his head. “I’m not very good at this,” he mumbled before continuing. “I meant… our… our future. I just don’t know what it looks like. Does that make sense?”

She nodded, eyes becoming glassy despite how hard she was clearly trying not to get emotional.

“I do, Kristoff, believe me. And I can see that you are worried about… well, about what it will mean for us to stay together-”

“ _If_ we stay together.”

Anna frowned, eyes filling with tears. “There is no _if_ for me. There is only you.”

As much as the thought of this conversation had distressed Kristoff over the past few days, he found oddly calm with it now. There were things he needed to say and he was ready to finally say them.

“You have to understand, Anna, there are things about me that will not change. I don’t think I can live as a kept-man. I cannot be idle. I would lose my mind to-”

She bristled. “Is that what you think I would want for us?”

“To be honest with you, Anna, I have no idea what you think our future would look like. And I am sorry that I have been making assumptions based on nothing. But that’s why we need to talk about it.”

Her body relaxed and she let out a long sigh. “I know. But I didn’t really think about it… at all. I just knew there was us and I didn’t consider anything else. Now that I say that out loud, that sounds kind of terrible, doesn’t it?”

He reached out and grabbed her hands into his. “No, it doesn’t,” he smiled, “And you have no idea how much of a relief that is to me.”

She could not help to smile back. “Really? Why is that?”

“Because it means you are as open to compromise as I am. With how different we are, how different our lives are, there are things that just won’t work if we are not on the same page. For example, I can’t leave Manhattan. My family is here and-”

“I don’t want to leave either! I have no desire to go back home. Well, to visit, but not to live. And I would want to travel, to see parts of the world. Not all the time of course, but definitely as often as we can.”

“Okay, that’s great, Anna. What else? What are the things that you _can’t_ live with? Tell me what is a _no go_ for you.”

She blinked, looking down at their hands in thought. After a moment, she looked back into his eyes.

“Your job. It would scare me now that I see how dangerous it really is. Not to mention that it wouldn’t give us a lot of time to spend together. You might be attached to it, but if we look, I just _know_ that we can find a suitable replacement-”

“Done. I totally get it. What else?”

She smiled at him eyes welling with tears again. “Um… your apartment? I was thinking we could find a new place? Nothing like my penthouse, I don’t want that either, that was all _his_ idea. But somewhere we both agree on? With just enough space in a good location?”

“Sounds good to me.”

She pulled one of her hands from his grasp to wipe at her eyes before placing in back in his. “That’s it. That’s all that would bother me.”

“Are you sure, Anna? There’s nothing else might be a deal breaker for you?”

She started to shake her head and Kristoff frowned, stopping her.

“You already know, don’t you?” she whispered.

He nodded and she dropped her eyes, apparently unable to look at him when she told him what she likely believed he was incapable of.

“I don’t know, Kristoff. When I say I didn’t think about any of it, that was included. But now that we are talking about this… about things that would make us being together not work out, I suppose that could cause a problem.”

“It’s not a _no_ for me, Anna.”

Her eyes snapped up to his, suddenly so wide and hopeful that it struck him in a very odd way.

“I’ll need a little time. Time to reset my life, my mind, get on track with a new future. But I know that I _can_ get there.”

“You’re serious?”

He nodded, feeling emotional along with her. “At first I thought _never_ , I do admit that. And it still terrifies me. But then the more I thought about it, the more I let go of all the bullshit I’ve been holding onto for all these years. If I was with someone else, I think that part of me would have stayed dead and buried, but the more I spend with you the more I realize that there is still a very big part of me that wants to have children. I can see them… with you.”

Anna yanked her hands from his and surged forward, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him fiercely. 

“I love you, Kristoff. I love you and no matter what we can make it work.”

“No matter what,” he agreed. “Just please be patient with me.”

Her answer was to kiss him hard and passionately. He moved with her, unfolding their legs and laying down on the bed with Anna on his chest. She wasted no time in snaking her hands under his shirt, trying to pry it off while they kissed. Kristoff wanted her just as badly and their naked bodies were soon pressed together.

She was not insecure this time and parted her legs to give him the access he desired. Ever since his first taste he had wanted to have her again. She moaned and writhed as he sucked on her clit, making him hard as a rock.

As soon as she came, he was moving, unable to hold back from wanting to be inside of her. He let out a low groan as his cock slid into her heat. He picked up a slow rhythm for only a moment before stopping and pulling himself from her.

“I want you on top of me again,” he muttered. “I want to see you take control.”

Anna pinched her lip in her teeth and nodded before moving. Kristoff laid on his back and gripped her waist as she positioned herself above him and the slid herself down his cock. Much like that first time he simply held her while she made love to him. It was fucking incredible, and when she met her second climax, he was right there with his own.


	23. Chapter 23

He missed the first call from his Dad but was out of the bedroom to catch the second one a half hour later. 

“Sorry, Pop. I was… busy.”

“No need to explain.” His father’s tone was knowing. “I’ve set you up a meet with Mattias tomorrow at one in central park by the East sixty-first Street entrance.”

“Thanks Dad. I appreciate that.”

“Listen, your mother wants you and Anna to come over for dinner again. She’s eager to have you back.”

“I know. And I want to come back again soon too. I just need to see these things through.”

“I get it.”

“I know you do. And thanks again.”

“No problem. And if you need anything else. Call me _anytime._ ”

Kristoff swallowed the lump of emotion that suddenly formed in his throat. “I love you, Dad.”

“Love you too, son. Take care of yourself.”

They said their goodbyes and Kristoff hung up and went over to where Anna was looking over the room service menu. It was stupid early to be ordering dinner, but Kristoff didn’t have it in him to wait. Anna had pretty much worn the last of his energy out of him. 

“I am all over this Lobster Pappardelle with butter and Parmesan sauce. What are you in the mood for, Kristoff?”

“That sounds good, just order two of those,” he sighed as he slumped beside her on the sofa and laid his head back against the top of the cushions. 

“You’re beat, aren’t you?”

He rolled his head to the side to look at her, unsurprised to see her eyes full of concern. “I’m okay, baby. Just need to catch up on some sleep.”

“Well I’ll order the food right now, and as soon as we are finished, lets get naked and go to bed.”

He could not help but chuckle. “That sounds fucking amazing.”

The grin she gave him in return was so bright and happy he felt it touch his soul.

~ ~ ~

Anna woke first.

Kristoff was facing her on his side, deep asleep. He was holding her left hand where it lay against the mattress between them. It still amazed her how still of a sleeper her was. He didn’t snore, he barely even moved. If it weren’t for the slow sleep-relaxed rise and fall of his chest, she would think he was just lying there with his eyes closed.

She took a moment to admire him before reaching out with her free hand and gently placing her palm on his cheek. His body didn’t even so much as flinch, but his eyes opened and gazed immediately into hers.

It sent a shiver down her spine. It was too easy to get lost in the warm brown depths of his soul. 

“Good morning,” she whispered.

He smiled softly. “Morning. What time is it?”

“Just about six.”

“Well your touch is a much better way to wake up than any alarm clock.”

Anna grinned as he leaned over and kissed her on the lips before rolling away and sitting up. Anna got up with him, shrugging into her robe while he turned the clock radio off and stood to stretch out his back. She watched his naked backside as his muscles rippled across his skin and could not stop the breath of desire that fell from her lips.

He looked over his shoulder, arching one eyebrow and smirking at her.

Anna sighed. “Do you have any idea how sexy you are?”

That made him belly laugh, delighting Anna in a way he hadn’t done so yet.

“Just wait until I’m done with this shit. I am going to show _you_ just how sexy _you_ are.”

Anna’s face went slack with the sudden heat of desire that shot through her. She was very much looking forward to when his personal errands were finished. Now more than ever.

“Come on, we don’t have time for this right now,” he chuckled. “We have to get to the hotel before his shift ends.”

~ ~ ~

The young hotel managers eyes widened when he noticed Kristoff approach. Anna had taken a seat in the lobby to wait while Kristoff talked to him. 

He grinned and offered his hand. “Ah, detective Anders. I was wondering when I might see you again.”

Kristoff shook it. “Hello Greg. I hope you’ve been keeping well.”

“I have, sir. And how about you? I hope you caught those bad guys you were after.”

“I certainly did. But listen, I have a minor thing I would like to discuss with you.”

“Absolutely. We can go to my office-”

The thought of letting Anna out of his sight gave him chills. “Sorry, I am in a hurry. Perhaps we can just step over here?” Kristoff gestured to the end of the long check in counter. The two clerks behind the counter continued to help guests and paid them no attention.

“I have to confess my name isn’t detective Anders and I am not a cop,” Kristoff started, unsurprised that the young man’s face fell. “I’m actually a private investigator. The story I told you was to mislead you but it was also to help me get my hands on those tapes, and because of them, a young woman is now alive and safe.”

“I see… So having me staying past the end of my shift and asking all the employee’s if anyone had been asking for the blonde woman was for nothing?”

“Not completely. It turns out the people after her were smarter than to be foolish enough to do so, but at the time it helped me figure her situation out a great deal.”

Greg gave him a wan smile. “Well, I don’t appreciate the deceit, but I am glad that I could help someone. Now if you excuse me, I need to-”

“I may not be who I said I was, but I am a man of my word, Greg.” Kristoff reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a thick envelope. “Your reward, as promised.”

The younger man blinked at the envelope, clearly surprised. Eventually he took it and looked back up at Kristoff.

“I… um, th-thank you…”

The man was fishing for his name but Kristoff wasn’t going to give it to him. “Spend it any way you like, but do me a favour and take those two guys in the surveillance room out for a nice meal or something, alright? As a thank you from me.”

Greg nodded, completely unsure of what to say. Nothing needed to be said however, Kristoff turned around and walked to where Anna was watching and waiting for him. Her smile was radiant and he could not help but grin back at her.

*****

Commissioner Brooks was standing in the hallway outside of Dan’s room talking to his wife as they approached. It made Kristoff a little uneasy, wondering if he was there explaining what Dan had done. While he could not deny that it was wrong, Eleanor deserved to hear it from her husband and not the Commissioner. 

“Ah, Kristoff. Good to see you again.”

He took the offered hand and shook it. “You as well, Commissioner.”

“I was just telling Mrs. Caldwell here about Daniel.”

“Oh? How’s the old man doing, anyway?”

“Awake and talking,” Eleanor smiled proudly, dispelling any fears that the Commissioner was there to out Dan as a dirty cop.

“I’m so glad to hear that Mrs. Caldwell,” Anna said, beating Kristoff to the punch. 

“That’s great,” he added.

“Actually, with you here Kristoff, this would be a great time to go over somethings with Dan.” 

The Commissioners eyes were hard. Kristoff understood the meaning behind the statement easily without the look. He was about to let them know what he had decided and how it was all going to happen. 

“Mrs. Caldwell,” the Commissioner turned to her. “Perhaps you and the young lady could grab yourselves a coffee from the café downstairs while we have a little chat.”

Anna gave his hand a firm squeeze and he squeezed it back to reassure her. Neither one of them wanted to let the other out of their sight, but this was fairly important and he knew Anna would understand that.

“Alright, but keep it short please,” Eleanor gently pleaded. “He is still pretty weak.”

“Won’t take but a moment,” the Commissioner assured her.

The older woman nodded gratefully and turned to Anna. Anna smiled gently and gestured down the hall. The women took off towards the elevator banks and Kristoff could not keep his eyes off of her as they walked. 

“Any news on this Duke Morton guy?” Kristoff asked the Commissioner, not turning to look at the man until Anna had disappeared into the elevator.

“Not yet, but his bank account was emptied and when we searched his place it looked untouched. It’s highly likely that he’s on the run.”

Kristoff hummed his disapproval of the news.

“I take it this is an area of concern?”

“It most certainly is,” he admitted.

“Then you will be the first person I call when we catch him. Where can I reach you?”

“Waldorf. Under Mr. and Mrs. Anders.”

“You will be the first to know. Now let us get this over with, shall we?”

Kristoff followed the man into the room. Dan was looking wearily at them. There was no way he hadn’t heard the conversation that took place right outside his door.

“Commissioner,” he nodded his head then looked to Kristoff. “Kid. It’s good to see you. Did you get that fucker?”

“I did,” he confirmed with a small smile of satisfaction spreading on his lips. “That piece of shit is going to jail.”

“Twenty-five years without parole,” the oldest man in the room spoke up.

Kristoff looked at the Commissioner. “He took the plea deal?”

“Most definitely. He has smart lawyers, I’ll give him that. I don’t think it will matter too much in the long run anyway, aside from saving you and the young lady from having to testify at trial. I don’t think he’ll last a month behind bars.”

Kristoff nodded, hoping the man was wrong, but Hans was just the type of guy to take the cowards way out to save himself twenty-five years of hell. All he wanted was for the bastard to truly suffer.

“And now the reason I am here,” the Commissioner announced. “I will keep this short and sweet since you both know the stakes.”

Dan and Kristoff shared an uneasy look before turning their attention to the man who had decided Dan’s fate.

“Dan, you are going to retire. I don’t care what you do, but you will never work in any official law enforcement agencies again. You will tell your wife you’ve made this decision based on your brush with death and that you simply can’t stick it out for another couple of years to get your pension, even if it was behind a desk. No doubt you’ll have to figure out your monetary situation on your own, but it beats the alternative, right?”

The weak man in the hospital bed had tears shimmering in his eyes as he nodded eagerly. “Understood Commissioner.”

“And if you do encounter any money issues, I expect that you will correct the situation in only law-abiding manners?”

“Absolutely, no question. Thank you, Sir.”

The uniformed man looked pointedly at Kristoff. “Actually, thank your friend. He really stuck his neck out for you.”

With that said he turned and left the room. Kristoff immediately understood the unspoken command. He was not to talk about this to another living soul and he was to make sure that his friend never committed another crime as long as he had air in his lungs. 

When he looked back at Dan the old man had tears running down his cheeks, too weak to actually weep or sob. 

“How do I begin,” he sniffed, lifting up a shaky hand and wiping the wetness from his face. “How can I say sorry and thank you enough, kid?”

“No need, Dan,” he sighed, taking a seat in the chair beside the bed. “I’m just glad he’s actually letting this slide. I was sure he was too straight to let it go.”

“You and me both,” Dan croaked out a feeble attempt at a chuckle.

“Well I’m glad you’ve seemed to have pulled through. I should probably head out soon-”

“When did you know?”

Kristoff took a breath, letting it out slow before he spoke. He shouldn’t be surprised Dan was asking him. If it were him, he would want to know right away too. 

“When I saw your partner on the tapes from the Gramercy Park Hotel, spying on Anna.”

“How?”

“Took me a minute, but when I saw it, I realized he had undercover cop written all over him. Then all the alarm bells that went off since I got attacked in my apartment finally made sense.”

Dan nodded. “It was the fact that I was on the phone with Hans when you tried to call me, wasn’t it?”

“Yes. And the fact that your guys didn’t get there fast enough to arrest the men who I had laid out. You cleaned it all up for him, didn’t you?”

Dan nodded, looking forward and his eyes falling out of focus. “It was Duke who brought me in. I needed the money. Eleanor… she…”

“Has cancer.”

Dan looked back at him with a small smile. “Had. She beat it. With the treatments I took the money for.”

Kristoff nodded, glad that in the end it had been worth it.

“Well, despite you completely stabbing me in the back, I am glad that you and her are going to be okay.”

The ex-detective started to tear up again. “I’m so sorry, kid. I really am.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Kristoff said with a sigh as he stood. “I get where you were coming from. If it were Anna, I wouldn’t have hesitated to do the same thing.” Dan smiled at him. “What?”

“It’s just nice to see you find something real, kid. You know… the other one… she wasn’t…”

“I know.” His jaw clenched. There was something in Dan’s tone that he didn’t like.

The older man started to tear up again. “I should have told you. It didn’t cross my desk until long after you had dragged yourself out of the gutter. I didn’t think brining it up would have been helpful at the time, but maybe I should have-”

“What is it?” He could not help the sharpness of his tone. This was leading to something that would have made him sick to his stomach and elevate his heartrate in a second if it were a few weeks ago. Now though, he welcomed it, feeling an inkling deep down that this was going to close off that part of his heart forever.

Dan licked his cracked lips. “A ticket to the Bahamas. _One_ ticket.”

Kristoff sank slowly back into the seat. “She _was_ using me.”

“It wasn’t only that. One of the uni’s knocking on doors said the couple right next to them reported that she seemed to be egging her husband on… almost daring him to pay you a visit to see how you stacked up. The witness accounts on what they argued about were all over the fucking place, I didn’t think much about it at the time. Then the thing with the ticket and I thought-”

“She was trying to get her husband to attack me so that I would kill him in self-defence.” Kristoff stared ahead, unfocused while the truth washed over him. At one point he might have thought such news would hit him like a ton of bricks. Now all it did was solidify his new focus and outlook on life. All that fucking pain and agony for all those years… and yet it was worth it to have what he had now. Where would he have been if Betty succeeded in her plan? It was likely he might have even ended up dead.

“I am so sorry,” Dan sniffed, bringing him back. “I should have told you, but you had pulled yourself back out of a hole so deep I can’t even imagine. I didn’t want to send you back into it. I just thought to leave well enough alone for the time being. But it got harder and harder to tell you as time went on. I… Jesus Christ, I really fucked you over, didn’t I?”

Kristoff surprised himself by smiling. “No,” he said quietly. “I’m glad I didn’t know until now.”

The old man regarded him with tired eyes. “The redhead means that much to you, huh?”

Kristoff stood. “She does. And you’re right, she is the real deal.” He left then with a nod to his friend, eager to grab Anna and take her back to the hotel room to show her how real she truly was.

~ ~ ~

Anna pulled herself away from him, panting and exhausted. 

The drive back to the Waldorf with the anticipation of making love had burned so hot within them that they weren’t even able to make it to the bedroom. Anna had torn off her jeans and pushed her panties aside and Kristoff fucked her against the door with his own pants pooled at his ankles.

And while he wanted to live in that moment of bliss forever, his Dad had done him a favour and he didn’t want to be late.

They had a man to meet.


End file.
